New Pest Pilot Point Option

I have added a new Pest feature to Groundwater Vistas based on a suggestion from John Doherty. This new option is another way of using pilot points for model calibration. Currently, Groundwater Vistas (and all other GUI’s for that matter) adjusts aquifer properties on a layer basis. If you have a hydrostratigraphic unit (zone) that spans more than one layer, then each layer would be kriged independently. In the new procedure, you place pilot points throughout each zone but they are kriged by zone and not by layer. The same properties are used at each row,column location in each zone regardless of layer.

There are a couple of advantages of this strategy. First, you get a more consistent property distribution within each stratigraphic unit. Second, you use a lot less pilot points, which speeds up the calibration process.

The trick is to make sure you don’t have multiple pilot points at the same X,Y location within the same zone (i.e., same X,Y but different layers). To assist with this, Groundwater Vistas will check for pilot points of the same type (e.g. Kx, Kz, S, Recharge) in the same zone at the same X,Y location. If overlapping points are found, one of them is converted to a constraint target (not used by Pest). You can see these points as green symbols instead of the standard red for pilot points. If you agree with the one that has been “turned off”, then you can just delete them. If not, you can convert back to a pilot point and delete the other duplicates. This check is done when you create Pest datasets.

The new pilot point zone-based kriging is activated on the main Pest options dialog as a check-box to the right of the check-box that turns on the use of Pilot Points. You will need Groundwater Vistas version 5.36 Build 5 or higher.

Latest Modifications to Groundwater Vistas (5.33 Build 24)

Well, after a long break from updating this blog, here are the latest changes to Groundwater Vistas. The current version is 5.33 Build 24.

Enhancements:
- Many changes to Focus TMR operations for SWFWMD's DWRM2 model
- The batch hydrograph function was activated (see plot/hydrograph/batch processing)
- Added 2 new residual posting options (average error and amplitude ratio) for transient targets
- Added RCL (row, column, layer) import for matrix properties (see props/import/rcl)
- Added support for combining MT3D UCN files for Plot/File Operations/Combine Binary files

Bugs:
- We added transient Kv to head-dependent boundary conditions (drain, river, etc.) in an earlier version. When importing older models, the Kv was being set to zero.
- There was a problem in some cases with color-flooding in cross-section view.
- Pest template files were not recognizing ET zones after the first stress period
- Using BCs/Modify/Copy Stress Period command sometimes caused a memory error.
- The option to reset the Initial Head property when creating the MODFLOW dataset (where initial heads were read from external sources) was not working for MODFLOW2000 models

User Alert - Please Send GWV Files

When emailing us about technical support questions, please include your GWV file if your question is specific to your model. You do not need to send the gwv file if you question is conceptual or general in nature. However, if you are asking about convergence issues, memory errors, display problems, or anything detailed about your particular model, we cannot answer without seeing your model. We treat every file as confidential and delete them after the question has been answered so you don't need to worry that you are violating client confidentiality.

I cannot count the times over the past few months where my answer to technical support questions is "I cannot answer that without seeing your model". I am not clairvoyant and I cannot see your computer screen from my office in Pennsylvania.

You can get your gwv file to me in three ways: (1) email it if the zipped file is less than 5 megs, (2) upload to www.groundwatermodels.com - click Clients button, (3) upload to your own ftp site. In all of these cases, though, please compress your file using WinZip or other file squashing program.

Latest Groundwater Vistas Modifications

The latest version of Groundwater Vistas is 5.33 Build 13. Here are the modifications since my last posting:

Enhancements:
- Added zonebud format to Props/Export/Zone Numbers
- Changed color flooding of properties with bitmap map files to make it easier to see the colors
- Added prompt to repair streams after xyz file import
- Added Pest option to have negative RLAMFAC value
- Added sub-space enhanced Tikhonov in Pest 11.8 (note that Pest 11.8 not yet added to Vistas as we have not yet confirmed it works properly
- Added option to always draw wells regardless of which layer you are viewing
- Added transient SFR import of precip, et, runoff, and flow from text file
- Added column headers when copy/pasting from spreadsheets
- Added river bottom elevation to simplified BC editing
- Allow uncoupled transport simulation in SEAWAT2000
- Added reach number range for copying transient BC data and BC cycles

Bugs Fixed:
- Export of HFB (walls) to shapefile not working in rotated models
- Various bugs fixed for GWM
- When importing streams from text file, the reach number was always 1
- Problem with GHB file in MODPATH when GHB head was negative
- Problem importing RES input file without name file
- Gradient targets not exported properly to shapefile
- There was a problem using the DDREFERENCE flag in output control with MF2k5
- BCs/Modify/Copy Stress Period could give memory error if there were mixed steady and transient BCs and the user chose not to convert steadystate to transient
- Updating recharge pilot points after Pest run did not work properly.
- When using Pest with Kz pilot points, sometimes not all the *._kz files were written out.
- UZF Package option to use HSU zones as layer numbers did not work
- Layer number not exported to shapefile for no-flow cells
- Problem importing EVS GVG file when more than 30 layers
- Lake BCs in TMR files sometimes did not import properly