March 7, 2016
BOSTON — Coast Guard Aids to Navigation Team Woods Hole members climbed structures in Buzzards Bay Sunday to upgrade the lighting systems to self-contained LEDs.
The older 155 millimeter lanterns, which were replaced, are powered by a battery, which is in turn charged by a solar panel. The new LED lights combine all of the separate elements of the older system into one component.
Installing the LEDs decreases how often the lights need to be serviced dramatically, said Petty Officer 1st Class David Skena , an electrician's mate at Aids to Navigation Team Woods Hole.
Aids to Navigation Team Woods Hole is responsible for maintaining 250 buoys, 20 lighthouses, and 54 structures along the coast of southeastern Massachusetts.