Message posted by rrindsig on January 25, 2010 at 15:06:10 PST:
Any thoughts as to the purpose of the large earth berm east of the new hangar? Visual barrier...maybe, but what would they hide that a satellite wouldn't see? Presumably, the project aircraft would be in the hangar during daylight, so why hide it from a ground observer? Also, this would be quite an expensive way to build a visual barrier. Something having to do with RF reflections? I know that large metal buildings can really screw up VOR/DME signals. Maybe this was built for that reason. Blast deflector? Probably not. Temporary storage of gravel for future expansion of facilities in the immediate area? Quite possibly, as recent paving operations may have produced a quantity of salvaged material. (Another use might be for "surcharging" the area, a construction technique used to compact the underlying soils, but I don't think there is evidence of this having been done in past construction on the site) Any other ideas?
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