Visual MODFLOW - integrated groundwater modeling environment for MODFLOW, MODPATH, MT3D, RT3D, and WinPEST Visual MODFLOW Categories: flow models - pathlines/capture zones, flow models - saturated zone, model interfaces and modeling shells, solute transport models - saturated zone, MODFLOW programs

What's New in Visual MODFLOW 3.1

Support for MODFLOW-SURFACT Improved Model Calibration Graphs Calibration Residual Maps Import Multiple Bitmap Images for Site Maps New Cell Inspector Parameters Recharge Boundary Condition Model Appearance Options 3D Visualization

Visual MODFLOW is the proven standard for professional 3D groundwater flow and contaminant transport modeling using MODFLOW-2000, MODPATH, MT3DMS and RT3D. Visual MODFLOW Pro seamlessly combines the standard Visual MODFLOW package with WinPEST and the Visual MODFLOW 3D-Explorer to give you the most complete and powerful graphical modeling environment available







Support for MODFLOW-SURFACT
( Read the Benefits of Using MODFLOW-SURFACT
in Visual MODFLOW.pdf (PDF file) )

Visual MODFLOW now supports the advanced groundwater
flow modeling capabilities of MODFLOW-SURFACT. This
powerful numeric engine has been developed specifically to
address many of the limitations of the standard USGS MODFLOW codes and to bring groundwater modeling to a higher level of sophistication. MODFLOW-SURFACT utilizes special numerical methods and powerful solvers to avoid the solution convergence problems caused by dry cells, to gracefully handle surface ponding caused by excessive recharge, and to redistribute well pumping rates from over-pumped cells to underlying cells. MODFLOW-SURFACT also includes a rigorous treatment of unsaturated zone flow processes for simulating groundwater flow and soil vapor flow in the vadose zone. These new simulation capabilities open up a whole new set of possibilities and opportunities for you to expand and improve your groundwater modeling expertise.

*MODFLOW-SURFACT must be purchased separately






Improved Model Calibration Graphs

Visual MODFLOW v.3.1 includes many new features for evaluating and interpreting the model calibration:

The data points in the Calibration Scatter Graph can now be linked     to the map view in the main Visual MODFLOW window. By clicking     on a data point in the graph, an info bubble will appear with the     well name, X and Y coordinates, and the calculated and observed     values. In addition, the observation well associated with the     selected data point(s) will also be highlighted in the map view in     the main Visual MODFLOW window. This new feature makes it very    easy to quickly identify the location of the wells associated with poorly calibration data.

The data point symbols in the Calibration Scatter Graph are now displayed according the model    layer where the observation points are located (i.e. different symbol shapes and colors for    different model layers) allowing you to easily identify the vertical location of the observation point.

The calculated model results for each grid cell center are now interpolated to the well location to    provide a more accurate comparison between the calculated and observed data at the observation well.

A Calibration Statistics Reports can be generated for printing or pasting into a report document.

The Calibration Statistics Report now includes the Correlation Coefficient.

Preferences settings allow you to set the number of decimals for the Calibration Statistics and    Output Time values.






Calibration Residual Maps

    

The Calibration Residual Maps are used to display the calibration data values at selected observations points using tags, or to represent the residual values using color-filled bubbles at selected observation point where the bubble radius is scaled according to the residual value. However, the options for controlling the appearance of the tags and the bubbles were quite limited. This latest version gives you complete control over the color, size and content of the text in the tags, and it allows you to control the color and scale of the bubbles. In previous versions it was sometimes difficult to effectively use the bubble plots because the range of values was so high that it was difficult to differentiate all but a few of the points. This latest version of Visual MODFLOW allows you to associate a min and max bubble size to a min and max residual value such that all residual values above the maximum value will be plotted using the same maximum radius, regardless of the value.






Import Multiple Bitmap Images for Site Maps

Multiple bitmap images can now be imported into a project and georeferenced after the project has been initially created. This allows you to have several different bitmap images for representing different types of data. Bitmaps can also be used simultaneously with ESRI GIS (.shp) files and AutoCAD (.dxf) files.
GIS and Database Support

ESRI GIS (.shp) files and database have become two of the main sources of data for groundwater models, and Visual MODFLOW is making it as easy as possible to incorporate this data directly into your model. Version 3.1 now allows you to import pumping well data and observation well data directly into your model by mapping the data required by the model to the fields stored in the ESRI GIS shape or MSAccessTM database files. In addition, Visual MODFLOW easily accommodates missing information with optional "fill values" and has built-in data validation checks to prevent you from importing erroneous or corrupted information.






New Cell Inspector Parameters



Several new parameters have been added to the Cell Inspector to facilitate better understanding about the model geometry and properties, and to help interpret the modeling results. These new parameters include:

  Cell top elevation
  Cell bottom elevation
  Cell thickness
  Specified head (for head dependent boundary conditions)
  Conductance (for head dependent boundary conditions)
  Flow velocity in the X-direction
  Flow velocity in the Y-direction
  Flow velocity in the Z-direction






Recharge Boundary Condition



Visual MODFLOW v.3.1 now allows you to assign descriptive names to each Recharge zone and to assign Recharge flux to grid cells in any layer of the model. This allows you to use the Recharge boundary condition as a specified flux boundary condition in layers other than the top layer or the upper-most active layer.






Model Appearance Options

Visual MODFLOW v.3.1 now includes options to control the display options for many more model attributes including:
  Size and color of the well symbols and labels
  Color of dry cells, inactive flow cells and inactive transport cells
  Color of cell areas above the water table in cross-section
  Hide/show vertical gridlines in cross-section view






3D Visualization

VMOD 3D-Explorer has been dramatically improved with the addition of several new visualization features and many improvements to existing features. Some of the more significant improvements include:

Synchronization of output times for flow and transport simulations in order to simultaneously    animate the changes in head and concentrations.

Color-filled contour maps display a uniform color fill between contour lines, where the color    changes in a step-wise manner from one contour interval to the next. This provides a more    dramatic representation of the change in values than the smooth gradational color change shown   with the color map objects.

Transparent contour line labels and multiple contour line labels with a user-defined minimum     distance between each label.

A more robust algorithm for creating AVI animation files.

An auto-rotate feature for automatically rotating the image around selected axes.

Visual MODFLOW 3.1 New Features