About Us
Our mission is to accelerate the skill improvement of weather forecasting by building networks of vertically-profiling UAS with unprecedented levels of autonomy and harsh environment capability. These novel profiles of the boundary layer and beyond will fill a gap in the global observing system which no other technology can—with unprecedented precision, accuracy, and cost-effectiveness compared to any existing observation technology. This will ultimately result in less social economic sensitivity to weather and our changing climate.
The boundary layer, the first few kilometers of the Earth's atmosphere, is the most turbulent, chaotic and rapidly-changing. Yet there is a significant gap in observations in this region, which fundamentally limits our understanding and forecast skill.
Above the Earth's surface, existing in-situ observations are limited to disposable sondes and sensors mounted on crewed aircraft. Improvements to these existing observation networks have stagnated and even receded in some regions. This is due to practical and economic limitations to quality and spatio-temporal resolution. Namely increasingly high marginal cost, low propensity to automation and environmental impact from disposability and use of non-renewable resources.
New technology and methodologies are required to unlock greater atmospheric understanding and forecast skill. MetSprite takes a new approach, utilising wxUAS to repeatedly profile the boundary layer and beyond. MetSprite’s reusability enables economical use of high quality sensing systems. Combining this with greater spatio-temporal resolution and automation addresses the practical limits to the atmospheric observation gap.
Menapia have been developing the MetSprite since 2020 and we are now ready to reveal our capable and robust solution.
How did Menapia come to be?
In the beginning…
The core idea came from experience of the quality and accessibility of weather information while flying aircraft, paragliding, and sailing. Delving into the world of weather forecasting revealed the importance of boundary layer state knowledge, and the lack of routine in-situ observations. It wasn’t long before the idea of UAS based weather observations was reached. Their dynamic freedom and appealing potential for economic gains through automation presented a well suited platform for measuring the atmosphere.
Getting started
The founders John and Peter Mooney have been creating technology together from an early age, a journey from remote control to piloting full sized aircraft with custom sensors strapped to them. The idea of a MetSprite presented a catalyst to build something truly game changing for the world. Meeting Meteorologist Ben Pickering with his passion for weather UAS, felt like fate, and highlighted the scientific need for better atmospheric observations.
Origins of the name
The Menapii were a seafaring Belgic tribe dating back to at least 500BC. One of the few tribes to survive the Roman expansion, they sailed through arduous climatological and political conditions, trading between the European continent and the British Isles. We are named Menapia in respect of their resilience, and as a metaphor for the challenges we face creating UAS for harsh conditions in a novel regulatory environment.
Why Leeds?
Located in the centre of Britain, Leeds is a great city with an abundance of tech talent, rich supply chains and dynamic weather, which is great for testing tough UAS!