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Predicting War Weather
Thu May 08, 2003
Listen in RealAudio 
Despite having the most sophisticated military equipment in the world, U.S. forces in Iraq
still depend on knowing the weather. Hi, I'm Bryan Yeaton for The Weather Notebook. Leda
Hartman visited Shaw Air Force Base, where military meteorologists predict weather for the
Middle East.
The 28th operational weather squadron has a lot going on these days. It's responsible for
predicting the weather for the U.S. Air Force Central Command ... or CENTAF ... the region
that includes Iraq. Chief Celinda Larabee, who supervises enlisted soldiers, says 30 staffers
are working on the forecasts in 12-hour shifts.
CL: The CENTAF operation cell is about a room half this size, but with the same amount of
people sitting elbow to elbow, monitor to monitor. We've had an influx of people in to
forecast weather for that area.
Ground troops in Iraq need to know about dust storms and high temperatures. Air crews need to
know about turbulence and cloud cover. Both want information on visibility.
CENTAF's chief forecaster, Major Chris Finta, says combat forecasters need to address every
aspect of a military operation.
CF: We're doing broad-scale forecasting, and forecasting for fixed points within that area.
And then as operational missions require weather support for air force and army forces, we
support that as well.
Military weather squadrons have access to some of the most sophisticated satellites and radar
stations in the world -- as well as pilot reports. So their forecasts are generally more
accurate than regular commercial ones.
The soldiers at CENTAF say they can forecast the weather from one hour to five days in advance
... and do it accurately down to one square mile. For The Weather Notebook, I'm Leda Hartman
at Shaw Air Force Base, Sumter, S.C.
The Weather Notebook is supported by Subaru of America, and The National Science Foundation.
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