The Story Of The Secret Cold War City The U.S. Built Under The Snow In Greenland, Told In 21 Photos
Daniel Bonfiglio
Published
6 hours ago
in
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The Cold War is raging, tensions are heightening, and the Pentagon is trying to maximize every conceivable tactical advantage. The year is 1959.
In a psychological war of mutually assured destruction, nothing is more important than nuclear missile delivery. And how do you make sure your missiles work? Put them closer to your target, and spread them out.
How do you do that? A nuclear powered arctic research base in Greenland called Camp Century. Or at least, that’s what the United States wanted everyone to believe.
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In reality, the facility was part of Operation Iceworm, a real life Star Wars Hoth base consisting of 52,000 square miles worth of underground tunnels, and 2,100 missile silos. -
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By spreading the silos out over such a distance, Pentagon planners believed no coordinated Russian strike would have the ability to destroy them all at once. -
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Using a system of rail cars, the 600 nuclear-tipped “Iceman” missiles, aka “Minuteman” missiles, would be constantly shuttled between silos. This meant any attack would effectively be playing a guessing game of missile whack-a-mole. -
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Greenland was chosen both for its proximity to Russia, and its flat geography. With an elevation change less than one degree across the facility, construction could be simple and uniform. -
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Thule Air Base
Flying into Greenland’s pre-existing Thule Air Base, workers would travel an additional 150 miles to reach the facility. -
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With many tunnels hundreds of feet into the snow, the facility was effectively an underground city. -
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Housing 200 soldiers at once, Camp Century included a barber shop, a library, offices, science laboratories, warm shower facility, and of course sleeping quarters. -
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While the facility did make some scientific breakthroughs, becoming the first place to drill to the bottom of Greenland’s ice sheet, its main purpose was largely unsuccessful. -
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Moving ice and snow blockages rendered many parts of the facility inoperable, and ultimately problems with the central nuclear reactor meant that the Army abandoned Camp Century altogether in 1966. -
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While Camp Century was never classified, Project Iceworm remained a secret until it was exposed in 1997 by a Danish Parliament investigation.
- REPLAY GALLERY
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Replay - The Story Of The Secret Cold War City The U.S. Built Under The Snow In Greenland, Told In 21 Photos
In reality, the facility was part of Operation Iceworm, a real life Star Wars Hoth base consisting of 52,000 square miles worth of underground tunnels, and 2,100 missile silos.
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