The son of an immigrant carworker in Detroit, he had become an air cadet at the age of 17 and then a member of the army air forces, in which he trained as a meteorologist.

• 他是美国密歇根州底特律一位汽车工人移民的儿子，17岁时进入了空军军官学校，并在那时加入了美国空军部队，接着就在那受到了作为气象学者的训练。