Cold War Relics - Titan Missle Museum

[icassell]

Near Tucson AZ, were 18 Titan II Missle Silos. Each one contained a 9 Megaton Hydrogen Warhead. These were decommissioned under the START talks, yet one remains as a museum to the era. This was an amazingly creepy experience for a child of the 'duck and cover' era.

#1 HF Communications Antenna Array

#2 The "Key" was kept here

#3 This is the 1st launch key

#4 And this is the 2nd

#5 The beast

 

[LaFoto]

I am ever so happy no one EVER felt the need to turn the key on the second launch control table (or on the first, for that matter). I find the close-up on the second launch unit best (and creepiest).

 

[icassell]

I am ever so happy no one EVER felt the need to turn the key on the second launch control table (or on the first, for that matter)

You and me both. I was totally creeped out when my twin 12 year olds sat in the launch chairs and put their hands on the keys .... This stuff is far too well burned into my memory to laugh about it (I'm 54).

I wondered why the wrote US Air Force on the sides of the missile -- who was going to read it?

 

[stsinner]

When I saw the size of that missile, I caught myself saying to myself, "Oh my God!" That's almost worth the price of a trip just to see that thing. How tall was that missile?

What's really odd is all the wear marks on the control panels.. Why did they ever have a need to touch them in order to create that wear?

 

[MissMia]

Cool stuff Ian! I took that tour several years ago, it was fascinating. I have shots of me turning the key.

stsinner: the missile is 103 feet tall. It is a tour not to be missed. I imagine the wear on the control panels is from running drills.

 

[icassell]

When I saw the size of that missile, I caught myself saying to myself, "Oh my God!" That's almost worth the price of a trip just to see that thing. How tall was that missile?

What's really odd is all the wear marks on the control panels.. Why did they ever have a need to touch them in order to create that wear?

Remember that this missile was the same one used as the launch vehicle for the Gemini program .... it is huge (11 stories). I don't know for sure, but I'll bet they have one at the Smithsonian air and space museum in D.C. too (I haven't been there in many years), but you don't get the whole silo experience with that. I hadn't thought about that with the wear marks ... but, as MissMia says, they ran constant drills (that is creepy in and of itself).