Multivariate Multi-Step Long Short-Term Memory Neural Network for Simultaneous Stream-Water Variable Prediction

Implementing multivariate predictive analysis to ascertain stream-water (SW) parameters including dissolved oxygen, specific conductance, discharge, water level, temperature, pH, and turbidity is crucial in the field of water resource management. This is especially important during a time of rapid climate change, where weather patterns are constantly changing, making it difficult to forecast these SW variables accurately for different water-related problems. Various numerical models based on physics are utilized to forecast the variables associated with surface water (SW). These models rely on numerous hydrologic parameters and require extensive laboratory investigation and calibration to minimize uncertainty. However, with the emergence of data-driven analysis and prediction methods, deep-learning algorithms have demonstrated satisfactory performance in handling sequential data. In this study, a comprehensive Exploratory Data Analysis (EDA) and feature engineering were conducted to prepare the dataset, ensuring optimal performance of the predictive model. A neural network regression model known as Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) was trained using several years of daily data, enabling the prediction of SW variables up to one week in advance (referred to as lead time) with satisfactory accuracy. The model’s performance was evaluated by comparing the predicted data with observed data, analyzing the error distribution, and utilizing error matrices. Improved performance was achieved by increasing the number of epochs and fine-tuning hyperparameters. By applying proper feature engineering and optimization, this model can be adapted to other locations to facilitate univariate predictive analysis and potentially support the real-time prediction of SW variables.