The Titan missile site is preserved as it was when taken out of service in Nov. 1982. It was activated in Jul. 1963.
Titan 830
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The mission emblem - a study in Freudian subtext.
Titan 831
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Illustration of the complex - the control module is to the left, entrance in the middle an missile silo on the right.
Titan 832
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Map of the 18 Titan missile installations around Tucson. This one is 571-7, the first one south of Tucson.
Titan 833
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In the visitors center - a mockup of the warhead cone and of the warhead itself.
Titan 834
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W-53 thermonuclear warhead is this big - 9 megatons yield.
Titan 835
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Helpful graphic showing what 9 megaton explosion would do to Tucson.
Titan 836
Titan 837
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Up top - various antennas and intrusion detectors.
Titan 838
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Fuel tanker and security jeep.
Titan 839
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The primary and secondary communications antennae. The solid one retracts into the ground like a periscope.
Titan 840
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Radar intrusion detectors - an "invisible fence".
Titan 841
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Some kind of antenna - or lawn sculpture.
Titan 842
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Ultra-low frequency antenna.
Titan 843
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The 700-ton blast door over the silo.
Titan 844
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No people!
Titan 845
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Fueling tanker and connections.
Titan 846
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The primary rocket motor(s).
Titan 847
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Inside a motor.
Titan 848
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Looking down into the silo - the Titan II is a little over 100 ft. tall, and the silo is 150 deep.
Titan 849
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Closer look and you can see the hole cut into the warhead housing for visual confirmation (per SALT II treaty) that this is not a viable weapon.
Titan 850
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Going down - mind the rattlesnakes!
Titan 851
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The first door of 4 you'd need to pass through to get to the control center.
Titan 852
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If there are any rattlesnakes, Paul will attract them with his yummy ankles.
Titan 853
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The second door is an 12-inch thick solid steel affair, with polished contact surfaces to provide an electro-magnetic seal when closed.
Titan 854
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Like the sign says....don't try to open this yourself.
Titan 855
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All of the structures within the containment shells are suspended on springs, including the missile itself, to absorb the shock of a nuclear blast from above. It's designed to allow 18" of deflection in any direction.
Titan 856
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The corridor connecting the control module and missile silo is suspended within a concrete tube. The cylinders between every joist are springs. This location has been used in several movie scenes.
Titan 857
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The main control room - 2 officers and 2 enlisted men manned the site from here. They had living quarters upstairs, including a kitchen.
Titan 858
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The communications panel and secure safe containing the launch codes. The missile could be launched in under a minute from the time the launch alert came through.
Titan 859
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The keys used to initiate a launch. The commander and deputy commander had to insert and turn their keys simultaneously and hold for 7 seconds to initiate the launch sequence. After that, there was no going back.
Titan 860
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The commander's key insertion was in the middle top of the panel - where the hole in the protective plexiglass is, and the deputy commander's key was just out of sight on the panel to the left. They are more than 7 ft. apart so no one person could reach both.
Titan 861
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The hazmat suits for refueling. The dark, irregular parts are patches.
Titan 862
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The motion control unit - sensed ground movement and controlled hydraulic dampening systems.
Titan 863
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In the silo - the "NO LONE MAN ZONE" meant you had to be with another person at all times.
Titan 864
Titan 865
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The missile with two of the retractable maintenance platforms deployed.
Titan 866
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Top of silo
Titan 867
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Control cable connections.
Titan 868
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Fuel temperature gauge. The fuel had to be kept at 60 degrees or it would explode.
