In ISOSCAN, we have set ourselves an ambitious goal: we want to contribute to making better predictions of floods and droughts in Scandinavia. We want to approach this goal from two directions:
The first direction is a collaboration between scientists from different research fields. Working together is essential for solving complex problems such as understanding weather, snowfall, and how water moves in the ground and rivers. In ISOSCAN, atmospheric scientists (meteorologists) discuss with water scientists (hydrologists) to find the best way to collect data that can make mathematical prediction tools more reliable.
Data that we find useful to make better predictions comes from small water samples that we collect in rain, snow, streams, lakes, and wells. Some data is already available in databases and printed articles and just needs to be put together. But we also produce lots of new data from measuring new water samples that we collect from different parts of Scandinavia.
Yet, being a small group of scientists, the number of samples we can collect ourselves is very limited. This leads to the second direction from which we approach our project goals: We create an opportunity where locals and tourists who go and enjoy nature can bring back a sample for us to analyse. We have asked the public for help several times in the past, where saw that this can work well both for us scientists and the samplers.
Nonetheless, people are different, and what works for some need not work for many others. Therefore, we develop the sampling methods in ISOSCAN together with locals and tourists. Scientists working with people (anthropologists) and with tourism research interact with participants and local stakeholders to further develop sample collection in a way that allows many more to contribute to our project.
Altogether, ISOSCAN is a daring, novel approach to otherwise traditional scientific research. Our aspiration is that ISOSCAN brings people in touch with our science, creates exchanges, and make a positive contribution to the relation between scientific knowledge creation and the wider public.