A spatial stochastic algorithm to reconstruct artificial drainage networks from incomplete network delineations

[Display omitted] ► We develop an new algorithm to reconstruct an entire drainage network from network unconnected segments. ► We use this stochastic algorithm to represent uncertainties in network mapping. ► We develop metrics to evaluate morphological similarities between networks. ► We examine topographical, geometrical and topological properties of the reconstructed networks compared to a 2.6 km2 vineyard catchment actual network. A spatial stochastic algorithm that aims to reconstruct an entire artificial drainage network of a cultivated landscape from disconnected reaches of the network is proposed here. This algorithm uses random network initialisation and a simulated annealing algorithm, both of which are based on random pruning or branching processes, to converge the multi-objective properties of the networks; the reconstructed networks are directed tree graphs, conform to a given cumulative length and maximise the proportion of reconnected reaches. This algorithm runs within a directed plot boundaries lattice, with the direction governed by elevation. The proposed algorithm was applied to a 2.6-km2 catchment of a Languedocian vineyard in the south of France. The 24-km-long reconstructed networks maximised the reconnection of the reaches obtained either from a hydrographic database or remote sensing data processing. The distribution of the reconstructed networks compared to the actual networks was determined using specific topographical and topological metrics on the networks. The results show that adding data on disconnected reaches to constrain reconstruction, while increasing the accuracy of the reconstructed network topology, also adds biases to the geometry and topography of the reconstructed network. This network reconstruction method allows the mapping of uncertainties in the representation while integrating most of the available knowledge about the networks, including local data and global characteristics. It also permits the assessment of the benefits of the remote sensing partial detection process in drainage network mapping.