Minuteman Missiles: When the Neighbors Had 150 Nukes
During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union lived under the constant shadow of what strategists politely called Mutually Assured Destruction — the idea that if either side launched a nuclear strike, they'd receive an equally devastating one in return before the smoke even cleared. It was the geopolitical equivalent of two people holding grenades and agreeing not to pull the pins. Worked great. Very relaxing time in history.
While I'll leave Russia's side of the story to better-read people than me (thanks for trying, high school history), I do know quite a bit about how the U.S. prepared for the unthinkable. Scattered across remote regions of the country — out of sight, out of mind, but never out of reach — the military positioned nuclear missile sites ready to launch at a moment's notice. We touched on one of these in our Everglades article with the Nike Missile Site. Today, we're heading to the wide open plains of South Dakota to visit the Minuteman Missile Silos.
Things to See
Delta-09 Missile Silo
Yes, there is still a nuclear missile in the ground here. No, it has not been disarmed in the exciting sense — it's been decommissioned, which is significantly less dramatic but considerably better for everyone involved.
From 1963 through the early 1990s, this missile sat armed with a 1.2-megaton nuclear warhead — one of 150 spread across South Dakota alone. The silo itself is 12 feet in diameter and 80 feet deep, constructed of reinforced steel and concrete. That's quite the hole. You can't go underground, but you can lean over the viewing window and peer down into the abyss. Whether that's cool or terrifying probably says something about your personality.
Delta-01 Launch Control Facility
From the outside, Delta-01 looked like an unremarkable ranch house behind a barbed wire fence — the kind of place you'd drive past without a second glance. Which was, of course, entirely the point.
This facility was responsible for monitoring and controlling 10 missiles out on the plains. With 1,000 silos total, that meant 100 control centers like this one operating as auxiliary units to Ellsworth Air Force Base. Up top, 8 crew members monitored the surrounding environment and provided support around the clock.
Thirty-one feet underground, behind a reinforced concrete bunker and a steel blast door, lived two missileers at a time — taking turns watching instruments and waiting for an Emergency War Order that, thankfully, never came. I can only imagine what it was like to sit down there for days at a stretch, knowing the fate of civilization was partially in your hands, and your biggest entertainment option was probably a deck of cards. No pressure though.
Crews rotated on a 3-days-on, 3-days-off schedule, with on-site housing for both the permanent crew and maintenance personnel working the nearby silos. Tours are available and must be reserved up to 30 days in advance at recreation.gov — because even nuclear history runs on a schedule.
Planning Your Visit
A few things worth knowing before you go:
The Delta-01 underground tour has a capacity of just 9 people per session due to the size of the elevator. Book on recreation.gov up to 30 days in advance — don't wait until the week before and expect to get in. That missile waited 30 years to be visited. You can plan ahead.
Suggested Itinerary
- Start at the Minuteman Missile NHS Visitors Center (just north of the Badlands Northeast Entrance) to get your bearings and a little historical context before you start staring into holes in the ground
- Take a guided tour of the Delta-01 Launch Facility — reserve in advance on recreation.gov
- Drive out to Delta-09 and peer into the silo
- Wrap up your morning at Wall Drug for lunch — because nothing says "post-nuclear history" like a 5-cent coffee and a billboard you've seen 400 times on the highway
Cost
Visiting the outdoor sites is free. Underground tours run $12 for adults and $8 for youth ages 6–15. Children under 6 are not permitted on the underground tour (which, honestly, is probably fine — explaining nuclear deterrence theory to a kindergartener sounds exhausting).
Wall Drug meals run roughly $11–$24 depending on what you order, and the souvenir situation there is... robust. Budget accordingly.
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