There Might Be a Missile Under That Bison Patty

For those of you who remember when the USA and the USSR were engaged in the Cold War, South Dakota played a key role in our ability to respond to a nuclear attack. Under the peaceful meadows just outside Badlands National Park lie more than 150 Minuteman missile silos. The Minuteman program was developed in the 1950s and each missile could travel over the North Pole and arrive at a target (presumably the USSR) in 30 minutes, delivering the explosive equivalent of 1 million tons of dynamite. Today, the National Park Service conducts tours through a former missile control center. There were 15 such centers in South Dakota, each capable of launching 10 missiles. So, we know where the control center was. But as to exactly where the missiles are.... well, they're somewhere out there among the bison and prairie dogs.

The grasslands as they looked this week.

The Minuteman control room as it looked in the 1960s.

Domino's-inspired artwork on the blast door of the control center.