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Titan Missile
Museum |
 Your travel source with a personal touch! |
| The Titan II Missile
Museum in Green Valley, Arizona is the only remaining ICBM launch site in the
United States. When the site was decommissioned by the military, volunteers and
townspeople (many of whom worked at the site, turned it into a museum. Along
with several interesting displays in the visitor center, and the static displays
on the surface, the featured attraction is a tour deep into the missile silo
which still houses a 103-foot tall Titan II.
Retirees staff the museum and are the only guardians of the cold war between the United States and the former Soviet Union. The normal tours last one hour beginning with a "briefing" before you put on your hard-hats to begin the tour. Although it would be great if everyone could visit the museum and take the tour, I will take you on a typical tour along with lots of pictures of the site. (Note: Click on the links for pictures.) |
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After your briefing, the tour begins outside on the surface of the site. The site itself seems to be a rather open location with only a barbed wire fence surrounding the area. In fact, the entrance to the titan missile base was unguarded and kept unassuming to lower suspicions and fears to what it was. However, the base was monitored 24 hours by security cameras and motion detectors. The motion detectors, called tipsies, surrounded the silo door and if anything broke the barrier, the crew underground could call for assistance. Air Force security personnel roamed the surrounding area in jeeps and helicopters and could be at the site in minutes if the alarms sounded.
Passing several of the actual vehicles used at the site, you are soon to the area where the fuel storage trucks are located. It was here that the fuel was unloaded and stored before being pumped into the huge missile. From here it is a short walk to a display of the first- and second-stage engines of the Titan II.
There is also a display of the reentry vehicle that contained the nuclear bomb. The re-entry vehicle, which contains the nuclear warhead, is the black portion at the top of the the missile, a copy of which can be found in the museum. The light colored portion at the top of the missile is an ablative heat shield for the re-entry vehicle. I find it interesting that on the tour the guides always refer the warhead of the missile as the "reentry vehicle." Why not call it what it is - a big bomb?
You are then led to the massive sliding door, the silo closure door, that once protected the missile. The door is partially open allowing you to pear down into the silo for a good look at the actual missile. A two foot hole has been cut in the reentry vehicle nosecone so that the Russian satellites could verify that the missile has actually been deactivated.
A walkway leads you past several communication towers to the entryway to the underground area of the site. The regular tour takes you down about 35 feet into the silo. One of the first things you notice is the sign warning you about the possibility of rattlesnakes. This sign is a part of the original structure as it seems that the snakes would sometimes go down the steps in the summer to find a bit of shade. The sign was placed there to remind the crew of the possibility of a snake coiled in the shade at the bottom of the stairs. I suppose it could still happen today.
There are 55 stairs (There is an elevator for those who cannot make the climb.) that lead you down to the command center of the site and the missile silo. There are several locked doors with access to the site made available only to the crew members who can give the proper passwords on the telephone to the crew that is currently on station so they can open the doors for their relief crew.
After passing through the concrete and steel doors, you are lead into the control room. The entire silo and underground rooms are on springs and the walls are not connected to floors, but sort of "float" on the springs. This is part of the designed that allowed the complex to withstand anything but a direct nuclear hit.
In the Launch Control Center, an old punched tape reader is ready to feed secret target directions into the guidance system. All of the equipment is original, and is over 40-years old. This might be the scariest part, rather than the missile itself, is how antiquated the equipment seems that once was responsible for our national security. It did not seem possible that the toggles, switches, analog dials, and flashing computer panels in the room could actually deliver this nuclear payload 6,500 miles away.
In any event, you can see it all in the control room while the guide explains the system and takes you through a simulated launch. As the countdown begins and all of the secret codes and counter codes are authenticated, the safe where launch keys and launch codes are kept and the drama begins. Two different keys are inserted into two different parts of the computer by two of the crew, and must be inserted and turned within two seconds. After this has been accomplished, there is no turning back. The old antiquated equipment is on automatic. Lights begin to blink, alarms and bells go off, and the missile is soon on its way. All the crew can do at this point is begin the shutdown procedures and wait.
From the control room, the group is led down the cableway for an underground view of the missile in the silo before returning to the top for the end of the tour. You turn in your hard hats, and are then led through the gift shop and the exit of the museum.
Following is information about the regular tour that is limited to 25 visitors per tour and is offered every half-hour beginning at 9:00 am with the last tour beginning at 4:00 pm. Click on Regular Tour for additional information.
There are other interesting tours of the facility that are offered at an additional cost. For most of these tours, you must make advanced reservations. Click on the following tours for additional information. Regular Tour - Tuesdays at Titan Director's Tour - Tuesdays at Titan Crew Tour - Beyond the Blastdoor Tour
- One-Hour guided tours of the missile site are offered every half-hour beginning at 9:00 am.
- The last tour begins at 4:00 pm.
- Groups are welcome, but reservations are required for general admission group tours (10 or more paid visitors paying in one transaction). Please call the visitor reservations line at (520) 625-7736. For school groups and educational programs (many of which are free), please call the museum.
- Tours include a six-story view of the Titan II missile in its silo, a visit to the underground launch control center, and a simulated missile launch.
- Good walking shoes are required (no heels please).
- Food and beverages, except bottled water, are prohibited.
- Smoking is not permitted inside museum buildings or while on the guided tour.
- The underground portion of the missile site is accessed by a flight of 55 steps in the Access Portal. An elevator is available to access the underground portion of the missile site for those who have limited mobility or who need special assistance.
- The Titan Missile Museum is an ADA compliant facility. A limited number of wheelchairs are available at the Visitor Services Desk, and all restrooms are wheelchair accessible.
- The Museum Gift Shop is open during regular Museum hours, and features top-quality museum, rocket and flight-related gifts, apparel, books, models, and educational toys. Museum admission is not required to shop in the Store, and sales proceeds support the mission of the Titan Missile Museum.
- Non-commercial photography and video recording are permitted.
Director's Tour Tuesdays at Titan
1st Tuesday of the Month: Director’s Tour.
Tour the museum and missile site. Your tour guide will be Yvonne Morris,
Director of the Titan Missile Museum and a former Titan II Missile Combat Crew
Commander. Yvonne will share her unique perspective on the museum and you’ll
learn about life as a Titan II Missile Combat Crew Commander. Tours last
approximately 90 minutes and are limited to 20 people. General admission fees
apply. Reservations are required and may be made by calling 520-625-7736.
Tuesdays at Titan Crew Tour
2nd, 3 rd, 4th and 5th Tuesdays of the Month: Crew Tour.
Tour the missile site with former Titan II Missile Combat Crew Members as your
tour guides. Hear their stories and learn from their first hand experiences.
General admission fees apply. Tours last approximately 90 minutes and are
limited to 20 people. Reservations are required and may be made by calling
520-625-7736.
Beyond the Blastdoor Tour
On the first Saturday of every month, explore areas of the missile site normally
closed to the public. On this tour you visit the
living quarters to see where the crews ate and slept. Then descend more
than 100 feet underground and enter the
launch duct. Experience a view you’ll
never forget as you stand directly beneath an actual Titan II missile! This tour
cannot accommodate wheelchairs, scooters,
walkers, crutches, or children under 8 years old. Tours begin at 9:30
AM and are limited to 20 people. Reservations
are required, and may be made by calling 520-625-7736.
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Hours and Directions: The Titan Nuclear Missile Museum is located at 1580 W Duval Mine Rd, Green Valley, Arizona. Directions from Tucson: Follow I-19 south to Duval Mine Road in Green Valley. Turn left and travel about a mile to the museum that is located on your right. Hours: 9 am - 5 pm, daily Phone: 520-625-7736
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