Making a real impact in an ever-changing world

Can you tell us about you and your background? 

I’m a Radar Research & Development (R&D) Engineer with the Met Office, developing improvements to our weather radar systems. Weather radar provides the location and intensity of precipitation (including rain, snow and hail), in real-time. This is crucial for detecting and observing severe weather (such as intense rainfall) and feeding into the forecast models. After graduating with a degree in Geophysical Sciences, I worked as a geophysicist, processing seismic data (soundwaves) to map the subsurface and geological structures. Since joining the Met Office in 2017, I’ve been able to develop my skills and knowledge through my job and additional training, despite not having a formal education in engineering. It’s been vital for me to do continual learning and development to address any skill gaps and to keep up-to-date with the evolving advancements in my field. This is something the Met Office has encouraged and supported me to do.  

Why did you want to join the Met Office? 

I’ve always been fascinated by the weather and knew of the Met Office as a world-leader in weather and climate science. I thought that doing Radar R&D would allow me to follow my curiosity to solve difficult technical problems, and enable me to utilise the skills I’d acquired in my previous job. But I hadn’t appreciated the true breadth of work done across the Met Office until I’d joined. Alongside the more visible work, there’s a wealth of expertise in data, science, technology, engineering (and more!). They are often working quietly behind the scenes, but are absolutely central to how we operate and make an impact. I’ve appreciated meeting so many dedicated people from different disciplines, all working together for a common purpose. 

What do you do in your role? 

The Met Office is unique in that we develop our radar systems in-house, rather than buying them from a radar manufacturer. This gives us the flexibility to make continual, incremental improvements to enhance the data quality, reliability and to test cutting-edge scientific research. My day-to-day work encompasses a wide variety of subsystems and processes. Some days I’ll be in the lab, doing hands-on testing of radar components, or writing software to interface with a new sensor or component. I also write and maintain the software that controls the radar hardware (such as moving the antenna) . Additionally I develop new maintenance and calibration processes for our Field Service Engineering team to keep our radar network operating optimally. Working in R&D also gives me the opportunity to research new ideas and keep up-to-date with emerging technologies. 

What's it like to work at the Met Office? 

The Met Office is an exciting place to be, as there’s always something interesting to learn more about. There’s a really supportive atmosphere, and people are always willing to help or share about their work. It’s great to be surrounded by so many talented and passionate people working to make a real impact on people’s lives in our ever-changing world. 

This blog was published in June 2025