Sgt. Fox Posted May 25, 2008 Share Posted May 25, 2008 I recently traveled waaay out into the middle of nowhere for a tour of the Titan II Missile Base. The Titan II Missile Base, more formally known as Titan II ICBM Site 571-7, is located in the Arizona desert about 20km south of Tucson, and is what would be commonly referred to as a "Nuclear missile base." The complex is a massive 8 level facility located 140ft underground, hardened against potential nuclear attack, and protected at ground level by Doppler ground intrusion radar installations. The Titan II missile inside the launch silo is 103ft tall, uses hypergolic propellant for immediate launch, and was equipped with a W53 warhead yielding 9 Megatons. I say "was" equipped, as the warhead has been deactivated pursuant to the 1981 SALT Treaty. Not a Good Place to Trespass. Use of Deadly Force Authorized Doesn't Look Like Much from the Surface Spare Re-Entry Vehicle For the Top of the Missile Looking Down at the Missile From the Top of the Silo Let's Head Down Into the Complex For Security Reasons, Everybody is Armed and Nobody can be Alone at Any Time. You Watch Me, I Watch You... This is the Launch Control Center The Red Safe is Where the Launch Order Confirmation Codes are Kept /> Two Keys on Opposite Sides of the Room Must be Turned at the Same Time to Initiate Launch. There is No Stopping the Launch After That... Missiles Away. You'll Need Something to Read While You Wait for Incoming It Must Have Served Its Purpose... The Flag is Still Flying The Titan II Missile Base was definitely built with bad intentions. Everything gives off that vibe, from the massive blast doors and reinforced concrete walls to the rooms that are entirely suspended on massive spring coils to absorb shock waves. However, we lived in a different world back then and were facing some very real threats to our security and way of life. I hope the Titan II Missile Base is kept up and continues to offer tours to the public so today's and tomorrow's kids can get a glimpse of what the Cold War was like for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phazan Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 Wow, that's pretty cool! That silo is awesome Just curious, do you have some sort of red accent on your camera turned on? The red's in the pictures are really bright! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Fox Posted May 26, 2008 Author Share Posted May 26, 2008 No color filters, but I did adjust the curves in Photoshop to pop the colors and contrast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phazan Posted May 26, 2008 Share Posted May 26, 2008 That's cool. Are you into photography? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Fox Posted May 26, 2008 Author Share Posted May 26, 2008 ^ Yeah, I shoot a Canon Rebel XTi and take quite a few photos. Do you do photography? I'm thinking about trying out HDR photography, since it looks pretty cool. My web gallery is at http://www.arizonasteve.com I have a BUNCH of Disneyland and WDW photos on there accessable from the pull down topic menu if you're looking for theme park photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
printersdevil78 Posted May 27, 2008 Share Posted May 27, 2008 This looks like a really cool place! Thanks for posting it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelizeIt Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 Great Trip Report. I have the sudden urge to break out my 'War Games' DVD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
odene497 Posted May 28, 2008 Share Posted May 28, 2008 The inside of that silo reminds me of one of the levels on Goldeneye 007. Good 'ol Nintendo 64. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Fox Posted May 28, 2008 Author Share Posted May 28, 2008 Fun Fact: Part of the movie Star Trek: First Contact was filmed in the missle silo. The missle doubles as the first warp drive vehicle built by Zephyr Cochran in the movie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pagemaster_b Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 Fun Fact: Part of the movie Star Trek: First Contact was filmed in the missle silo. The missle doubles as the first warp drive vehicle built by Zephyr Cochran in the movie. That's why it looked so familliar!!! I've been whacking my brain trying to figure out where I had seen the pic of the missile silo before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missingmusician Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 The inside of that silo reminds me of one of the levels on Goldeneye 007. Good 'ol Nintendo 64. That's what I was thinking. I just kept thinking "Where are the scientists I'm not supposed to kill?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phazan Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 ^ Yeah, I shoot a Canon Rebel XTi and take quite a few photos. Do you do photography? I'm thinking about trying out HDR photography, since it looks pretty cool. My web gallery is at http://www.arizonasteve.com I have a BUNCH of Disneyland and WDW photos on there accessable from the pull down topic menu if you're looking for theme park photos. Yeah, I'm a photographer too. I use a Canon 40d (50mm 1.8 lens, and a 17-85 IS). I've made a few HDRs using the trial version of Photomatix, they're fun! It actually gives you the $100 (I think) software to make them for free, if you can live with the water marks on your pictures. I looked at your site..you take nice pictures! Here are some of my good ones, if you want to see ^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 ^40D? I hate you. I need to find one that someone wants to sell used so I can afford it. Im using the original Digital Rebel which has a better sharpness sensor than the XT or XTi but lacks the overall size. The 40D is my upgrade of choice but after being at the Red Bull Air Race I almost think Id rather sink 1000 into a 200 or 300mm f2.8 L Series Lens with IS. Great pictures. They looked like they came from a SLR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phazan Posted June 2, 2008 Share Posted June 2, 2008 ^300mm L 2.8 IS.... I want one! But yeah, I love my 40D. It took like four months to save for it. I would really consider a nice telephoto L lens, but I don't think I would get much use out of it for how expensive they are. But you can always rent them for like $50 a week. That's what I am planning on doing for future air shows I go to Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Real Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 Where on earth can you rent them? Id do that in a heartbeat...its worth it considering all the shots I WOULD have had. Google is my friend. I never ever thought of renting stuff like that. Just figured no one would do it. Thats friggin sweet. Theres a 300 f4 IS for like 35 bucks for 3 days. 7 days insured for 57. That makes me mad! lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phazan Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 Yeah, it's so cool. It's perfect if you need a four digit lens for only one day of shooting! Or also, if you want to try out something before you buy it, you can see how you like it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcjaco Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 Great Trip Report. I have the sudden urge to break out my 'War Games' DVD. I was thinking the same thing. Where's WOPR? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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