Efficient uncertainty quantification techniques in inverse problems for Richards’ equation using coarse-scale simulation models

0309-1708/$ see front matter 2008 Elsevier Ltd. A doi:10.1016/j.advwatres.2008.11.009 * Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] (P. Dost This paper concerns efficient uncertainty quantification techniques in inverse problems for Richards’ equation which use coarse-scale simulation models. We consider the problem of determining saturated hydraulic conductivity fields conditioned to some integrated response. We use a stochastic parameterization of the saturated hydraulic conductivity and sample using Markov chain Monte Carlo methods (MCMC). The main advantage of the method presented in this paper is the use of multiscale methods within an MCMC method based on Langevin diffusion. Additionally, we discuss techniques to combine multiscale methods with stochastic solution techniques, specifically sparse grid collocation methods. We show that the proposed algorithms dramatically reduce the computational cost associated with traditional Langevin MCMC methods while providing similar sampling performance. 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.