# SSHP Quick Reference Guide

# For OB6

OHD/HL

September 2, 2005

minor edits January 25, 2006

## Introduction

The purpose of this document is to explain how to use the interface of
SSHP. For more details on the inner workings of the software, please see
the SSHP Reference Guide.

## ![](media/image1.png){width="5.989583333333333in" height="3.03125in"}Control Window

### Figure 1 - Control Window

### Control Window Menu Bar

**[File Menu]{.underline}**

> **[Open Analysis Window]{.underline}** -- Opens an Analysis Window for
> the selected location. More than one Analysis Window may be opened at
> a time.
>
> **[Exit Application]{.underline}** -- Closes the SSHP application and
> all of its windows.

**[Configuration Menu]{.underline}**

> **[Configure Fcst Points For SSHP]{.underline}** - Opens a Configure
> SSHP dialog. A point must be configured in order to appear in the
> table in the Control Window. Note: the basin_id must match the one to
> be used in the unit hydrograph. Check the **Unit Hydrograph Editor**
> to verify this.
>
> **[MAPE Monthly Values Editor]{.underline}** -- Opens a window for
> editing MAPE monthly values, which can be used as input into the
> SAC-SMA if MAPE time series is unavailable or undesirable.
>
> **[SAC-SMA Parameters Editor]{.underline}** -- Opens a window for
> editing SAC-SMA parameters.
>
> **[SAC-SMA States Editor]{.underline}** -- Opens a window for editing
> SAC-SMA state variables.
>
> **[Rating Curve Editor]{.underline}** -- Opens a window for editing
> the rating curve.
>
> **[Unit Hydrograph Editor]{.underline}** -- Opens a window for editing
> the unit hydrograph of the location. See the **SSHP Reference Guide**
> for more details.

**[Extra Menu]{.underline}**

> **[Run MAP Preprocessor]{.underline}** -- Runs the
> run_SSHP_MAP_preprocess script. This is generally not needed for
> offices which have configured their system to invoke the
> run_SSHP_MAP_preprocess script automatically with MPE/Fieldgen. It
> exists to handle unusual circumstances and troubleshooting.

### Buttons

**[Analysis Window Button]{.underline}** -- Opens an Analysis Window for
the selected location.

**[Exit Application Button]{.underline}** -- Causes the application and
all of its windows to close.

## 

## Analysis Window

![](media/image2.png){width="8.253472222222221in"
height="7.197222222222222in"}

### Figure 2 - Analysis Window When Using Kansas City API model

### Model Controls

1\. **[Rainfall-Runoff Model Button]{.underline}** -- Allows user to
choose between the API-MKC (Kansas City API) and SAC-SMA (Sacramento
Soil Moisture Accounting) Models. When the AnalysisWindow opens, it
defaults to the model selected in the SSHPConfigure table, which can be
edited from within the SSHP application.

2\. **[Model State ComboBox]{.underline}** -- Allows user to choose some
starting state data for the model. When the rainfall-runoff model
selected is the API-MKC, the state information includes the headwater
guidance and its associated date and time. When the rainfall-runoff
model is SAC-SMA, the button shows the date/time and source of the six
state variables used by SAC-SMA. These are stored in the IHFS database
and are retrieved based on the selected time and data source (**LOCAL**
or **RFC**).

3\. **[Refresh State List Button]{.underline}** - Allows user to cause
the program to reload the list of model states from the database into
the **Model State ComboBox** This is useful when it is expected that new
states have become available in the database since the Analysis Window
last loaded the state list.

4\. **[Fcst Hours Spin Box]{.underline}** - Allows user to shorten or
lengthen the overall duration of the forecast.

5\. **[Adjust By Observed Check Box]{.underline}** -- Allows user to
toggle on and off the forecast adjustment functionality. When this is
checked, the program will adjust the forecast according to observed
data. The adjustment functionality consists of 3 parts, **pairing**,
**interpolating**, and **blending**. This will make the forecast match
the observed when they overlap closely in time. It will also adjust the
purely future forecast according to the adjustment made for the parts of
the forecast that were paired with observations. The adjustment fades
out over time. See "**Blend Ahead Hours**".

6\. **[Blend Ahead Hours Spin Box]{.underline}** - Allows user to set
the fade-out time of the forecast blend portion of the adjustment
functionality.

7\. **[Latest Obs Time For Adjust Time Field]{.underline}** -- Allows
the user to set the latest time for which to use an observation with the
adjustment functionality.

### Graph Controls

### 

1\. **[Double Left Arrow Button]{.underline}** -- Adjusts the displayed
graph back 24 hours.

2\. **[Single Left Arrow Button]{.underline}** -- Adjusts the displayed
graph back 1 hour.

3\. **[Double Right Arrow Button]{.underline}** -- Adjusts the displayed
graph forward 24 hours.

4\. **[Single Right Arrow Button]{.underline}** -- Adjusts the displayed
graph forward 1 hour.

5\. **[Circle Button]{.underline}** -- Adjusts the displayed graph so
that the model run start time is about one-third of the way across the
displayed graph. This makes it the "Home" button.

6\. **[Show Obs Stages Check Box]{.underline}** -- Toggles the display
of observed river stages. The scale of the graph might change as a
result. This is useful when a spurious observation is causing the scale
to distort to an unreasonable range.

7\. **[Force Show Flood Stage Check Box]{.underline}** -- If this is
checked, the hydrograph scale is adjusted to guarantee that the flood
stage is in range to be displayed. Otherwise, the flood stage will be
displayed if and only if it is range because of observed and/or forecast
values. There is no way to force the non-display of flood stage.

8\. **[Delay Rerun While Drawing Check Box]{.underline}** -- This toggle
controls how quickly the model is run while graphically editing the
precipitation. If the user is attempting to drag (with the left button
down) the cursor across the precipitation graph in order to change the
level of future precipitation, some hours may be skipped. This problem
can be reduced by turning this option on. If on, the model is rerun
after the user releases the left mouse button. Otherwise, the model is
rerun whenever the user-interface can detect a change in precipitation.

9\. **[Show Minor Precip Lines Check Box]{.underline}** - This toggle
controls how many grid lines appear on the precipitation graph.

10\. **[Show Minor Stage Lines Check Box]{.underline}** -- This toggle
controls how many grid lines appear on the hydrograph.

### API-MKC Settings

1\. **[Use Custom Time Check Box]{.underline}** -- This toggle
determines if the custom model run start time that appears in the
adjacent Date Text Field should be used or if the date in the **Model
State ComboBox** (see **Model Controls** section) should be used.

2\. **[Custom Time Text Field]{.underline}** -- Click on this field to
have a date and time setting control pop up on the screen. The date and
time set here is used when the **Use Custom Time Check Box** is checked.

3\. **[Initial Stage Text Field]{.underline}** -- This field contains
the initial stage that the API-MKC rainfall-runoff model will use. To
change the value in the field, type in the new value and press the
**Apply Button**. If the **Apply Button** is not pressed, the
manually-changed value will ***NOT*** be used.

4\. **[FFH Text Field]{.underline}** -- This field contains the
headwater guidance number that the API-MKC uses as input to determine
soil moisture conditions. To change the value in the field, type in the
new value and press the **Apply Button**. If the **Apply Button** is not
pressed, the manually-changed value will ***NOT*** be used.

5\. **[T. Runoff Text Field]{.underline}** - This field contains
threshold runoff number that the API-MKC uses an input. To change the
value in the field, type in the new value and press the **Apply
Button**. If the **Apply Button** is not pressed, the manually-changed
value will ***NOT*** be used.

6\. **[Apply Button]{.underline}** -- Button used to take the changes of
the 3 text fields to its left.

7 **[Initial Stage Reload Button]{.underline}** -- Reloads the initial
stage value from the database and applies it, which causes the model to
rerun.

8 **[FFH Reload Button]{.underline}** -- Reloads the FFH value from the
database and applies it, which causes the model to rerun.

9 **[T. Runoff Reload Button]{.underline}** -- Reloads the threshold
runoff value from information in the database and applies it, which
causes the model to rerun.

![](media/image3.png){width="7.127777777777778in"
height="5.579861111111111in"}

### Figure 3 - Analysis Window When Using SAC-SMA Model

### SAC-SMA Settings

1\. **[Edit Params Button]{.underline}** -- Pressing this causes the
SAC-SMA Parameter Editor to appear.

2\. **[Edit States Button]{.underline}** -- Pressing this causes the
SAC-SMA State Editor to appear.

3\. **[Edit MAPE Monthly Values Button]{.underline}** -- Pressing this
causes the MAPE Monthly Values Editor to appear.

### Menu Bar Items

**[File Menu]{.underline}**

**[Close]{.underline}** -- Closes the AnalysisWindow, but not the
application.

**[View/Edit Menu]{.underline}**

**[Precip Editor]{.underline}** -- This menu item starts up the tabular
precipitation editor.

**[Forecast Stage Editor]{.underline}** -- This menu item starts up the
tabular forecast stage editor.

**[Evapotranspiration Editor]{.underline}** -- This menu item starts up
the tabular evapotranspiration editor.

**[Prior Runoff Viewer]{.underline}** -- This menu item starts up the
tabular prior computed runoff viewer.

**[Runoff Viewer]{.underline}** -- This menu item starts up the tabular
newly-computed runoff viewer

**[Save Menu]{.underline}**

**[Save Forecast Stage]{.underline}** -- This menu item calls up a
dialog for saving the forecast stage time series to the database.

**[Save Forecast Discharge]{.underline}**. -- This menu item calls up a
dialog for saving the forecast discharge time series to the database

**[Save Evap Time Series -]{.underline}** -- This menu item calls up a
dialog for saving the evapotranspiration time series to the database

**[Reload Precip]{.underline}** -- This menu item reloads the
precipitation graph from the database and removes all changes that have
been made by the user.

**[Reload Stream Obs.]{.underline}** -- This menu item reloads the
observed stages/discharge from the database. This is useful when newer
observed data is expected or another application has been used to remove
erroneous observations.

### Other Controls

**[Model Run Start Time Label]{.underline} -** This label shows the
actual time being used as the model run start time. It matches the
magenta line in the precipitation graph and the hydrograph.

**[Control Window Button]{.underline}** -- Pressing this button will
cause the Control Window to pop up on top of the Analysis Window. This
is useful when the Control Window has become buried.

**[Capture Screen Button]{.underline}** -- Pressing this button will
call up a dialog to allow the user to save a screen shot (in JPEG
format) of the Analysis Window in a file of the user's choice.

**[Close Button]{.underline}** -- Pressing this button will close the
Analysis Window, but not the application. The Control Window will still
be open and any other instances of the Analysis Window will also be
open.

**[Pane Control Between Graphs]{.underline}** -- Dragging this up or
down allows the precipitation graph and the hydrograph to be resized.
One graph will get bigger and the other will get correspondingly
smaller.

### Precip Editing

The graphical precipitation display can be clicked on and edited. If the
desired amount of precip exceeds that currently displayed, click higher
than the top of the horizontal white line in the graph and some precip
will be added. The scale will change. Repeat if needed to adjust the
amount of precip to the desired amount.

Note: Editing precipitation BEFORE the model run start time has no
effect on the output of the model.

The precipitation can also be edited using a tabular interface available
from the **View/Edit** menu in the **Analysis Window**. Select the
**Precip Editor\...** menu item.

![](media/image4.png){width="5.708333333333333in" height="4.65625in"}

### Figure 4 - Mean Areal Precip Editor (Tabular) 

### 

## SSHP Configuration Window

![](media/image5.png){width="5.997222222222222in"
height="4.604166666666667in"}

### Figure 5 -- SSHP Configuration Window

### Window Controls

**[Lid Text Field]{.underline}** -- Used to indicate the location
identifier of an SSHP forecast point.

**[Basin Id Text Field]{.underline}** -- Used to indicate the basin id
associated with the location id. This is the basin id that will be used
to find the unit hydrograph in the the database. The basin id must match
the area id in the Unitgraph table.

**[Model Preference]{.underline}** - Indicates initial rainfall-runoff
model to use when initializing the Analysis Window. Also used in
conjunction with "Update States Locally?" to determine which (if any)
stations for which to run the local SacStateUpdater.

**[Use Adjustment]{.underline}** -- Indicates whether to use the
forecast adjustment feature as a default in the Analysis Window. The
feature can be toggled on or off in the Analysis Window.

**[Adjustment Method]{.underline}** -- Better called "Interpolation
Method", indicates the method of interpolation used by the adjustment
feature when the time window is appropriate for interpolation instead of
direct adjustment, or blending.

**[Blending Hours]{.underline}** -- Indicates the number of hours to be
used to perform the blending portion of the adjustment feature. This
portion is used when

### SAC-SMA Settings 

These settings are only applicable when the Sacramento Soil Moisture
Accounting model is being used.

> **[Update States Locally?]{.underline}** - Used to tell the system to
> keep track of its own set of SAC-SMA states by running the model in
> the background and saving the model states. This can be done instead
> of or in addition to receiving the states from the RFC. The background
> process that does this is called the **SacStateUpdater**.
>
> **[Data Source Preference]{.underline}** - Tells the SacStateUpdater
> which source of data it should use as the basis point for running the
> model and saving a new state. The source of data can be either **RFC**
> or **LOCAL**.
>
> **[Use ET Demand Curve?]{.underline}** -- Used to tell the model if it
> should use a simple 12-value (monthly) ET Demand Curve or,
> alternatively use a set of 12 (monthly) adjustment factors in
> conjunction with a time series of MAPE data.

**[Posting Time]{.underline}** -- Indicates time that this record was
saved to the database.