Past Page 03

You might have worked out by now that we’re progressing through the silo as one would on a walking tour. Here, we’ve re-entered the stairwell and are looking back up. (See orange dot.) It irks me seeing these old photos and thinking of how much needed to be done.

The Launch Control Center was partitioned into five areas. The photo on the left is of the largest, and is where the Launch Control Console was located, and where most crew gathered during operations. Although my intention was to retain as many of the original features as possible, I felt that if this area was to be of some future value, I was going to have to open it up. So, down came most of the walls. Unlike the top level of the LCC, the central column was enclosed, and I did like its shape, so that too had to be exposed. Under all the flaking paint and rust, you can just make out the orange primer that became the inspiration for the new color scheme throughout.

The central support column behind the now demolished partitions.
The central support column without partitions.

This is a small room on the lower level that housed various valves for the control of the gases that were used by the air-conditioning system. The gases were pumped from deep in the silo. You can see they were (and still are) sheathed in you know what. Although I’ve cleaned up this room, I have left it as you see it, as a kind of memorial to all the hard work that went into restoring the LCC. Due to the scale and technology of the original AC system, I’ve installed a more modest system, but still use the original ducting.

Back out into the stairwell and looking into the Utility Tunnel towards the silo. It’s not obvious, but there’s about a foot of water in it, which means the water in the silo was that high at that time.

In the Utility Tunnel looking towards the silo. Notice the high tide mark on the walls and pipes. That was as high as the water evercame over the last forty years, and was also what saved the LCC.

Salvaging the silo for the endless amounts of copper, steel, and stainless steel, as well as the enormous value of parts and machines that were left here, meant the end of any real historica value for the Atlas - F silos. Although the LCC managed to escape severe destruction, my silo was no different, having been decapitated down to Level Three: the level of the tunnel. This however did have an up-side, providing an enormous space with which to do something very interesting!

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