Issues with WRF-UCM using custom 33-category USGS Landuse (Seoul, South Korea)

[jade]

Hello WRF Support Team,

I am attempting to run WRF v4.7 with the Urban Canopy Model (sf_urban_physics = 1) for the Seoul metropolitan area, South Korea. I am using GDAS real-time data for initial and boundary conditions.

My Configuration & Workflow:

1. WPS Process: In the geogrid step, I used a high-resolution custom land cover map (KORLU_SUDO_UCM) based on the USGS classification. I sub-classified the standard Urban category (Category 1) into three categories: 31 (Low Intensity Residential), 32 (High Intensity Residential), and 33 (Commercial/Industrial/Transportation). Additionally, I incorporated SRTM data for the HGT_M field.
2. Namelist.input Settings:
   • sf_sfclay_physics = 1
   • num_land_cat = 33
   • sf_urban_physics = 1
   • use_wudapt_lcz = 0
3. Table Modifications:
   • LANDUSE.TBL: Added categories 31, 32, and 33. Removed categories 34–61 to match num_land_cat = 33.
   • VEGPARM.TBL: Added parameters for categories 31, 32, and 33 under the USGS section. Removed LCZ-related entries (34–61) to ensure consistency.

The Problem:Despite these modifications, I am repeatedly encountering fatal errors during the real.exe or wrf.exe stages. Most recently, I received a "Fortran runtime error: Bad integer for item 1 in list input" pointing to module_sf_noahdrv.F while reading VEGPARM.TBL. Earlier, I also saw "MISSING LANDUSE UNIT" and dimension mismatch errors.

I have tried to minimize edits to the standard tables to avoid formatting issues, but the model seems very sensitive to the USGS table structure in version 4.7.

My Questions:

1. Is it mandatory to maintain 61 categories in VEGPARM.TBL for WRF v4.7 even when use_wudapt_lcz = 0 and num_land_cat = 33?
2. Are there specific formatting requirements for adding urban sub-categories (31-33) in the USGS section that I might have missed?
3. Could you provide a clear guideline or a template for implementing UCM for non-US regions using custom land use data that isn't formatted as LCZ?

I have attached my namelist.input, LANDUSE.TBL, VEGPARM.TBL, and the error log files for your review. Any guidance on how to properly initialize the Noah LSM with custom urban categories would be greatly appreciated.

Key Troubleshooting Context:

• I confirmed that WRF-UCM runs successfully when I use the standard USGS classification (where Category 1 is Urban) with sf_urban_physics = 1.
• The fatal error ONLY occurs when I switch to the custom high-resolution land cover map where the Urban category is subdivided into 31, 32, and 33.
• Even though real.exe completes without issues, wrf.exe fails during initialization with the "Bad integer" error in VEGPARM.TBL.

My Questions regarding Versioning:

• Is this a specific limitation of WRF v4.7 when handling custom urban categories in VEGPARM.TBL?
• Would reverting to WRF v3.x be a more stable option for non-LCZ urban sub-classification, or is there a specific way to "register" categories 31-33 in the v4.7 Noah LSM source code to prevent this reading error?

ps. specified landuse file could not be uploaded in this page due to the size of it.

Best regards,