A Performance Assessment Protocol for Structured Mesh Multi-Scale Models

Nesting techniques are used to develop multi-scale models giving higher resolution and thus greater accuracy in nested domains. The assessment of model accuracy is therefore important for the successful implementation of nesting techniques. This paper presents details of a nested model performance assessment protocol. The basis of the protocol is the quantification of errors in the nested solution relative to a reference solution using a unique error parameter - the tidally-averaged relative error field, which simultaneously captures both spatial and temporal errors. The protocol was applied to an idealised tidal environment and was found to be an accurate measure of nested model performance. The approach is particularly useful for the development and testing of nesting techniques and the identification of suitable nested boundary locations.