Trinity Site 10.04.2008 - White Sands Missile Range, NM

Although not our original intent, this was to become the highlight of our vacation. We had been considering a trip to NM for about 2 months. Then, one fateful night I (Adriana) found a site on some chamber of commerce page that talked about the Trinity Site. Looking closer, I found out that the site is only open twice a year, with 10/4/2008 being one of those days. Needless to say, that sealed the deal. We HAD to go to NM in early October.

What is it? It is the test site of the first atomic blast.

There are two permanent fences around the site. At the outermost fence, there was an information booth, 2 souvenir tents, an area to purchase food, and port-o-potties. It was a long walk from the outer fence to the inner fence.

I had to admit that I was caught up in the tourist thing - vying with other people to get a picture of the obelisk and not stopping to solemnly reflect on what that fateful day meant to the future at that time and to the present future. If I ever return, I will stop, look around at the surrounding mountains, look up to the sky, and imagine what it looked like at that point in time and how the atomic age officially started.

In addition to the obelisk, there was the "Fat Boy" and a permanent shed. I had read that somewhere there was a window to the original crater, but I could not find it. FYI - the ground your feet are touching is not the original crater. It was filled is with dirt for obvious reasons.

We were not concerned about any threat of exposure to radiation.

















http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_site
http://www.atomictourist.com/trinity.htm