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All the United States Missouri Knob Noster Whiteman Minuteman Missile Site

Whiteman Minuteman Missile Site

The only remaining Cold War–era Minuteman II missile control center in Missouri.

Knob Noster, Missouri

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2timhill
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Control Room 80 feet underground.   2timhill / Atlas Obscura User
Vault door.   2timhill / Atlas Obscura User
Tour guide holding pressure cable sample.   2timhill / Atlas Obscura User
The launch control center   willstanton726 / Atlas Obscura User
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At Whiteman Air Force Base in Western Missouri, you can tour one of the two Minuteman II missile control facilities in the United States that were not destroyed after the Cold War. 

From 1963 until 1995, Missouri was home to 150 Minuteman II missile sites. Whiteman Air Force Base's 351st Missile Wing had 15 missile alert facilities, each one in command of 10 Minuteman II intercontinental ballistic missiles. In 1991, an international arms reduction treaty led to the Minutman II missiles being destroyed. Most of the silos were imploded and buried. But the missile site Oscar-01 located on Whiteman Air Force Base was left open to the public as a museum. Visitors can tour the control room, located in an underground vault 45 feet deep. The excellent guided tours are both interesting and informative.

Related Tags

Missiles Cold War Military Weapons

Know Before You Go

Follow the directions on the Whiteman AFB website to obtain clearance to the base to avoid being turned away at the gate.

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Added By

2timhill

Edited By

scissorsmarket, willstanton726

  • scissorsmarket
  • willstanton726

Published

May 20, 2019

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Sources
  • https://www.nps.gov/places/oscar-one.htm
  • https://www.whiteman.af.mil/News/Features/Display/Article/326032/the-whiteman-underground/
  • https://www.whiteman.af.mil/Community/Base-Tours/Oscar-01-Tours/
Whiteman Minuteman Missile Site
172 SE 23 Hwy
Knob Noster, Missouri
United States
38.728108, -93.577423
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Nearby Places

Bothwell Lodge

Sedalia, Missouri

miles away

Nicholas-Beazley Aviation Museum

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miles away

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miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Missouri

Missouri

United States

Places 178
Stories 6

Nearby Places

Bothwell Lodge

Sedalia, Missouri

miles away

Nicholas-Beazley Aviation Museum

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miles away

Jim the Wonder Dog Memorial Garden

Marshall, Missouri

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Missouri

Missouri

United States

Places 178
Stories 6

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