 Minot
Airmen repair 'hi-tech thermometers'
MINOT AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. – Airmen at
Minot recently repaired and brought back online five Remote Automated
Weather Stations located at missile alert facilities throughout North
Dakota, an area known for long-cold winters.
The Airmen faced sub-zero temperatures to
repair the sensors that could tell them it's cold outside. "I'm glad
we repaired the sensors," said one of the Airman technicians. "Maybe
next time they want us to repair some damn hi-tech thermometers in the
middle of the winter, the sensors will remind them how damn cold it is out
there."
The RAWS sensors were originally installed in 1999 by the Bureau of Land
Management to determine how weather conditions affect wildfire. However, the
project was scrapped after the Bureau determined they could simply look at a
$6 calendar to determine the weather conditions in the northern United
States. Officials with the Bureau of Land Management said looking out the
window also provided useful weather information.
According to Minot officials, the systems are now used to collect vital
weather information for mission planning.
And as every Air Force missiler knows, sitting on alert in an underground
bunker is very dependent on the weather.
Wait … no it isn’t. |
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