I am somewhat of a railroad 'nut' and just got the latest "Trains" magazine (
Kalmback Media [
TrainsMag.com]) today. There is an answer to a readers question about why there are sometimes tanks of Liquified Natural Gas beside the tracks. The LPG is used for heaters on turnouts (movable rails that control the rout for a train) that are usually remotely controlled. During extreme cold and snow, the heaters keep the turnout rails free from ice. The answer mentioned that some of these heaters operate automatically using weather data collected on site. I immediately realized
wurzelmac's snow sensor would be a big help in those locations! I think all they have now are rain or moisture sensors which are probably mechanical and therefore subject to failure. His solution looks to be much more functional and sturdy!
If you visit the magazine's site and look along the right-hand side of the page, there is a video labeled "Issue Preview November". The last few seconds of the vid shows a coal, unit-train running over one of the turnouts with the heaters I refer to. Just before the end of the vid you can see two two LPG tanks on the left side of the tracks. The turnout is on the right set of tracks with some control cabinets even further to the right. "A video frame is worth a thousand words!" ... or something like that!