Titan Missile Museum

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Air Force Facility Missile Site 8 (571-7) Military Reservation
(U.S. National Historic Landmark)
An ICBM loaded into the silo of the Titan Missile Museum
Location:	Green Valley, Arizona
Coordinates:	31°54′10.9″N 110°59′54.29″W / 31.903028, -110.9984139Coordinates: 31°54′10.9″N 110°59′54.29″W / 31.903028, -110.9984139
Built/Founded:	1963
Architect:	Parson,Roy M.,Co.
Architectural style(s):	Other
Designated as NHL:	April 19, 1994[1]
Added to NRHP:	December 03, 1992[2]
NRHP Reference#:	92001234
Governing body:	AIR FORCE

The Titan Missile Museum, also known as Air Force Facility Missile Site 8 or as Titan II ICBM Site 571-7, is run by the nonprofit Arizona Aerospace Foundation and is located in Sahuarita in the U.S. state of Arizona ( 31°54′10″N, 110°59′58″W) at 1580 West Duval Mine Road. It is located roughly 20 km south of Tucson and features a Titan II intercontinental ballistic missile still in its silo. The museum contains a visitor center, an above ground museum, and the underground silo.

It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1994.^[1],^[3],^[4]

Contents 1 The Silo 2 The Titan II Missile 3 Yield and Warhead 4 Tours 5 Trivia 6 See Also 7 External links 8 References

[edit] The Silo

The hardened underground silo has eight levels protected by 3 ton blast doors and 8 foot thick concrete walls. The top level of the silo permits viewing the silo missile doors. Level 3 houses a large diesel generator. Level 7 is the launch duct. Visitors on the "Beyond the Blast Doors" tour are allowed to stand directly underneath the missile. Level 8, at 140 feet underground, houses the propellant pumps.^[5]

[edit] The Titan II Missile

Nuclear missiles, even at rest, are highly toxic, although the reasons may not be obvious. An inactive warhead is relatively harmless compared to the propellant used to launch the missile into space. The unique nature of the Sahuarita missile site is that all the original equipment is intact. The missile in the silo was used solely for crew training. Fuel was never loaded in the missile. The silo originally held an active nuclear missile, but the training missile replaced it when the facility was converted to a museum.

The 103 foot Titan II missile inside the silo has neither warhead nor fuel. In accordance with a US/USSR agreement, the silo doors are permanently blocked from opening more than half way. The dummy reentry vehicle mounted on the missile has a prominent hole cut in it to prove it is inert. All of the support facilities at the site remain intact, complete with all of their original equipment.

The silo became operational in 1963 and was deactivated in 1982 as part of President Reagan's policy (announced in 1981) of decommissioning the Titan II missiles. All Titan II silos throughout the country were destroyed, including 17 other sites around Tucson, except for this one. It is now a National Historic Landmark.

[edit] Yield and Warhead

The Titan II was the largest operational land based nuclear missile ever used by the United States. The missile had one W53 warhead with a yield of 9 Megatons (9,000 kilotons).

The facility's highest state of alert was November 22, 1963, when President John F. Kennedy was shot. When news of the shooting broke, the keys used to launch the missile were ordered to be placed on the tables at the launch consoles to prepare for a possible launch. The Pentagon did not yet know whether the Soviet Union had committed an act of war. The keys were not, however, placed in their switches.

At launch, orders from the National Command Authority would have specified one of three pre-programmed targets which, for security reasons, were unknown to the crew. The missile base that is now the Titan Missile Museum (complex 571-7 of the 390th Strategic Missile Wing) was at the time of closure, programmed to strike "Target Two". The target could not be changed by the crew. The target, classified to this day, assumed to be within the borders of the former Soviet Union, was designated as an impact blast, suggesting a hardened facility such as a Soviet missile base. The other targets were both designated as air blasts, suggesting larger targets, perhaps cities.

[edit] Tours

At the visitor center there is a small museum putting the Titan within the context of the Cold War. The basic tour includes a guided discussion above the facility, in the control room and a view into the missile silo. Above ground the hardstands for fuel storage containers and associated control vehicles are visible. There are restored engines (both stages) from a Titan II missile, a re-entry vehicle and a dramatic view from the top of the silo. The silo door is permanently blocked in the half-open position, with the open portion covered with plexiglass to allow a view of the silo interior.

The below ground tour duration varies depending on the tour chosen. The standard tour includes a visit to the control room through the controlled access entrance. In the control room, a simulated launch - a demonstration of the steps that would have been taken to launch the missile. Subsequently there is a walk through the tunnel to the silo.

The underground corridors are somewhat narrow and hardhats are required, and are provided at the start of the tour. Before starting the tour, a short video on the history of the Titan II is shown. To get to the control room, visitors normally need to walk down 55 steps. An elevator is available for those with limited mobility. Special behind the scenes tours are also available. The extended tours allow access the various levels of the silo, antenna silos and other site features. While the basic tour duration is approximately 1 1/2 hours, the extended tours can take 6 to 7 hours. The extended tours are available by reservation only. Reservations may be made via the museum web site.

[edit] Trivia

In addition to being a National Historical Landmark, several sequences in the 1996 film Star Trek: First Contact were filmed at the Titan Missile Museum. The missile itself was depicted to be the launch vehicle for Humanity's first warp ship, the Phoenix.

[edit] See Also

• Minuteman Missile National Historic Site

[edit] External links

• Titan Missile Museum
• Pima Air & Space Museum
• Aerial photo of site of Titan Missile Museum
• Color aerial photo of Titan Missile Museum
• NPR: Missile Museum Sparks Cold War Memories (February 9, 2007)
• NYT: Strange Love (January 5, 2007)
• Aviation: From Sand Dunes to Sonic Booms, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary

[edit] References

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