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 provides access to the lowest part of 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.
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).
A visit to the Titan Missile Museum begins with an introductory video hosted by "Chuck," who praises the hard work of the rugged missileers who kept this place running. He then warns the audience, many of whom might be white-haired Cold Warriors, that a visit to the launch bunker requires descending and climbing 55 steps. A slow, mechanical elevator is available if anyone needs help.
The scariest part of the Titan Missile Museum is not the missile itself, but the antiquated equipment on which our national security once rested. It looks marginally better than the creaky instrument arrays in old science fiction movies. In the launch room, an old punch-tape reader is ready to feed secret target directions into the guidance system. There are toggle switches, analog dials, bulky metal bays with grab handles, and push buttons that glow green, yellow, or red when you press them.
Each time one lucky visitor was chosen to turn the launch key, amid alarms, bells, flashing lights, and then an eerie silence. The turning of the key is still a high point of the tour, but the A/V component is gone. "That system bit the dust and we haven't been able to figure out how to replace it," explained Museum director Yvonne Morris. "We'd like to demonstrate how a launch would have sounded, but for now we're back to trying to 'set the mood' ourselves."
No comments:
Post a Comment