Hartmann

I have never been to the Trinity Site but if you want a chance at catching a live fire at a bombing range, check out this: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&z=13...60675&t=k&om=1

It's off US84 outside of Clovis, NM and I have caught many a B-1 and B-52 runs. You have to drive on some off the beaten path type roads and I definitely suggest a truck.

Djlawman

For those who cannot get there, you can look at it on Google Earth.

From the White Sands web site:

GPS Coordinates for obelisk (exact GZ) = N33.40.636 W106.28.525

GadgetFreak

Im actually going this April 7. I booked on AA to ABQ and will rent a car and drive down very early Saturday morning. Thanks for all of the input from everyone.

BNA_flyer

If I can get away with it, I may join you. I just have to lobby my wife. ("You like New Mexico, right?")

clarence5ybr

They are. On a monthly basis, or if you have 10 or more people, you can schedule your own.

rives21

Thanks Peachfront. Guess you're right. I will hang on to the trinitite for the memories.

AZ_MISMAN

Any updated information? I'm visiting on 10/6... then the balloon festival on 10/8.

Appletom

Google Earth fanatics (myself included) know how picky GEarth is about entering coordinates into the Fly To box. A copy/paste of the coordinates above won't work, but these two will:
33 40 6.36 N 106 28 5.25 W
33 40 6.36 N 106 28 52.5 W
(I'm not sure if the longitude is 5.25 seconds, or 52.5 seconds)

And, neither lat/long will place you dead set on the target. 5.25 is off by about 3/4 of a mile and 52.5 is off by about 2/3 of a mile. Copy and paste:
33 40 36.29 N 106 28 32.69W
into the fly to box and you are within a few feet.

A kmz file can be found here - http://www.gearthhacks.com/dlfile337...omb-blast,.htm

GadgetFreak

I went in the spring and I really enjoyed it, although it was pretty cold and windy. The scenery around there is pretty striking and they do a good job of preserving some of the history of the area, including ground zero itself and the ranch house where the bomb was assembled. A couple things to mention. First, is try to get there early. I got there before it opened and had about a 30 minute wait until it opened but then not much of a wait to get in (although there was a line when I got there). That will let you get in before it gets too crowded. Also, if it is crowded you might want to take the bus to the ranch house early so you dont have to wait.

Pictures on Flickr - here is one of the obelisk:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/9788300...7600235398693/


There are more there of ground zero, a the ranch, a pueblo 50 or so miles north of there and Pterogylph National Monument in ABQ.

One other suggestion, after you visit the site stop at the Owl Cafe near the entrance to the interstate for a green chili cheeseburger. I didnt care much for the branch in ABQ, but the one near White Sands is great.

runarut

I hate it when old songs pop into my head. If you remember Tom Lehrer's "The Wild West Is Where I Want To Be" you will understand why this particular thread popped this song into my head.

Lyrics can be found at http://members.aol.com/quentncree/lehrer/wildwest.htm and of course, there is an article on Tom Lehrer on Wikipedia.

dcameron

I went to the trinity site a couple of years ago and it was pretty cool. Like everyone else said there is a monument at ground zero, and the debris, but they also have a few other small exhibits on the missile range related to the testing. One of which is a little house where they built the plutonium core. On the bus to and from the site they also played a little film telling you about the development of the bomb and the scientists involved.

If you are going, I would also suggest after you leave to visit the Old Owl Bar in San Antonio, NM. Apparently they were one of the nearest restaurants at the time of the testing, and as a result used to serve many of the scientists from the site. They have a really good burger, and they make a green chili relish that is pretty good to put on it. ^

airmotive

I rode my motorcycle out to the Tirnity Site last year. Definately worth the experience - if for nothing else than to say you've been. With a modestly active imagination, one can easily stand a few hundred yards from the monument and picture the hellish fireball rising above the landscape

A few notes:
You MUST have a valid, government issued photo ID - It is, afterall, a military base.

The "trinitite" sold along the roadside is made by a welding torch, not an atomic bomb.

A section of the original crater floor was protected by an enclosure with a viewing port. However, the walls recently caved in and the original crater floor is no longer viewable.

Food/water/souvenirs/portable toilets are available.

Cameras are permitted but photos can be taken ONLY at the actual monument site. (see military base comment above)

The only actual artifacts at the site are a cement/rebar foot from the tower that held the A-Bomb, and a huge steel tube - named "Jumbo". Jumbo has a very entertaining history and purpose - which I'll leave to you to discover. http://www.takemytrip.com/images/448_IMG_8682.jpg

Genuine Atomic Bomb hot sauce sold only at the site is a great stocking stuffer!

The scenery is vast and majestic for hundreds of miles in all directions. In other words, don't run out of gas.

Blue Skies,
JJ

Bobster

But very few people know the whole story of Jumbo, and a Google search will probably not find the story.

General Groves proposed that a scaled-down test be conducted in a containment sphere. That was where the whole idea came from. He was concerned about gambling on a billion dolars worth of plutonium. The idea was to intentionally make a small bomb that would not vaporize Jumbo and then recover the plutonium for a real bomb. But Oppenheimer could not guarantee that the small scale test could actually be contained. He argued that the small bomb might be bigger than expected and they would still end up losing the plutonium.

It was not proposed as backup in case the Trinity test failed. That was Oppenheimer's alternate proposal, but he only did that get Groves calmed down enough to permit the plans for a test. Nobody was ever really happy with the idea for Jumbo being part of Trinity.

airmotive

Ahhh...a good teaser to the Jumbo story!
Go to the Trinity site, talk to the site guides, they have the Paul Harvey-esq "rest of the story". Including several attempts to destroy it to avoid governmental investigation. It turns out ol' Jumbo is a pretty tough cookie!

If after your trip to Trinity you still didn't get the story, I will lay the whole story out here, as best as I can tell it. But that would ruin the fun of the trip! No you HAVE to go!

Bobster

My source is "Critical Assembly: A Technical History of Los Alamos during the Oppenheimer Years, 1943-1945".

I thought that book had the full story on Jumbo, but it does end with 1945 so it isn't really complete.

They also built one-tenth scale Jumbinos for testing. The Jumbinos had holes blown out from the explosions and were left in a trash dump. They were rediscovered many years later by a jogger.