About Rob King

Rob develops airborne research instrumentation.

Areas of expertise:

• Electronics design and fault finding;

• PCB design;

• Aircraft-based instrumentation;

• 3D CAD modelling; 

• Low temperature and/or vacuum systems.

Current activities

The Facilities Group of Observational Studies has responsibility for all the Met Office instrumentation used on board the FAAM Bae146-301 aircraft, which the Met Office uses for its atmospheric studies. This list includes instruments such as the Shortwave Spectrometer (SWS), Spectral Hemispheric Irradiance Measurements (SHIMs), Fluorescence Water Vapour sensor (FWVS), Counterflow Virtual Impactor (CVI), Imaging Infra-Red Cameras (IIR), Wet Nephelometer and the large radiometers MARSS, DEIMOS and ARIES. The group also assists FAAM in support of core suite of instrumentation fitted to the aircraft.

Rob is heavily involved in the design, development, and manufacture of a new microwave Radiometer (ISMAR) and the upgrade of current radiometers (MARSS and Deimos). The data from these instruments will be used to improve the parametrized representations of radiative transfer in the Unified Models utilised by the Met Office. He also operates several instruments on research flights based in the UK and around the world. These instruments are primarily Radiometers: MARSS, Deimos and in the near future ISMAR, the aerosol Lidar and the CVI. He has been involved with a number of field measurement campaigns with the FAAM aircraft. These include CLPX-2 (2008), MEVEX (2009) and CAVIAR(2009).

Career background

Rob's career started as a research technician at the University of Exeter Department of Physics, specialising in low temperature semiconductors but with a broad remit covering various Physics and Engineering-based projects.  Subsequent to this, Rob entered the semiconductor industry, working with semiconductor lasers and sputtering equipment.  He is a qualified Service Engineer of CPI sputtering power supplies.

Rob joined the Met Office in March 2007.