If you are visiting Tucson, Arizona, and you are looking for something to do outside of town, I have two suggestions. These museums are especially interesting if you children in your traveling group.
Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
About 2.3 miles east of the Red Hills Visitors Center in the Saguaro National Park is the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Built in 1952, this museum explores the natural history of the Sonoran Desert and its adjacent ecosystems. Its founder, William H. Carr (1902-1985), had previously founded and designed the Bear Mountain Trailside Museum in New York State. Both have similar designs, using trails lined with native plants to take visitors on a tour of displays of local animals.
The Desert Museum has two miles of walking trails along a hillside the overlooks the a desert valley. It is part zoo, part botanical garden, with some history and arts education thrown in. It includes enclosures with animals, and interactive exhibits like a raptor fly and a pool with rays.
Titan Missile Museum
In 1959, the United States government developed a family of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), designed to carry nuclear warheads, the Titan II. In order to protect the missiles from attack, the country built underground silos that could be secured and isolated in case of attack. There were a total of 54 silos built, 18 each in Arizona, Nebraska, and Mississippi.
The Arizona silos were all built in the area surrounding Tucson, and one of them has been transformed into The Titan Missile Museum. Silo 571-7 was activated in 1963 and its service ended in 1984. The Titan II was an improvement on previous missiles. It used nitrogen tetroxide instead of liquid oxygen to combust its fuel. The N2O2 is stable at room temperature, so the missile could be fully loaded at all times. This reduced firing times for 15 minutes to less that 1 minute.
A four-person crew was responsible for maintaining and firing the Titan II, the commander, deputy commander, ballistic analyst, and facilities technician. They worked a 24 hour shift locked into a control room bunker that was 35 feet underground. The entire facility is physically isolated from its surroundings by dozens of heavy-duty springs meant to absorb concussions from an attack. A visit to the museum includes a tour of the control room and silo, which is stocked with a full size (103 foot) dummy missile. You even have the opportunity to go through the firing procedure.
Up on the surface there are several samples of the vehicles and equipment used to maintain and run the facility.
Visiting Tucson is a wonderful experience, but take to opportunity to get out of the city to see some of these interesting museums.
Nuts and Bolts
- Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum – 2021 N. Kinney Road. Tucson, AZ. The museum is open daily from 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM (7:30 AM June – Sept). Entrance fee is $29.95 adults/ $24.95 youth. There $2 discounts for AZ residents, seniors, and military personnel.
- Titan Missile Museum – 1580 W. Duval Mine Road, Green Valley, AZ. The museum is open daily (Oct-May) 9:45 AM – 5:00PM. It is closed Tues. and Wed. During June-Sept. There are tours every hour, with the last tour at 4PM. Please be aware that you must be able to descend and climb the 50 steps down inside the silo. You MUST register online before you arrive to take the tour of the silo. Entrance fee is Adults $19.50/ senior $16.75/ Pima County Resident and youth $15.75.
Really enjoyed this article! It’s refreshing to see lesser-known attractions around Tucson highlighted so thoughtfully. The contrast between the rich Southwestern art and textiles at the Tucson Desert Art Museum and the imaginative displays at The Mini Time Machine makes both spots sound unique and worth visiting. I also appreciate the practical details about hours and admission it’s super helpful for planning. This post definitely inspired me to add these museums to my Arizona travel list soon.
Thank you.