hydroinformatics

Managing data and information is at the heart of investigations into the water environment. Collections of historical data, such as those held at NERC's National Water Archive provide baseline data and information for identifying environmental change. Modern scientific research projects generate large volumes of detailed data, especially with an increasing use of digital instrumentation recording hydrological, hydrogeological and chemical parameters in increasing detail. These data need to be collated, processed and managed to make them available to future researchers. Data integration of disparate datasets using databases, GIS and spatial modelling both supports researchers and allows data, information and scientific results to be conveyed to a wide audience.

The Hydra consortium brings together specialist expertise in:

• Data collection and instrumentation development
• Data management
• Database development
• Geographical Information Systems (GIS)
• Data processing, programming and statistics
• Terrain and geological modelling
• Web development

The Hydra consortium has extensive experience in Informatics at National and Regional level. The National Water Archive at Wallingford manages the countries largest collection of water borehole information alongside data on river flow, groundwater level and water quality. Project specific experience includes managing data centres for LOIS and LOCAR. All the Hydra teams can call upon the expertise of specialist IT development and GIS teams within their host institutions, but include staff who combine ecological, hydrological and hydrogeological expertise with their informatics skills to ensure that solutions are effective and targeted closely at researchers requirements.

Details of staff with expertise in this field can be found in the directory of expertise or by contacting the champion for this discipline Andrew McKenzie.

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