Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 31
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral Air Force Station | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | 28°27′09″N 80°33′22″W / 28.45250°N 80.55611°WCoordinates: 28°27′09″N 80°33′22″W / 28.45250°N 80.55611°W | ||||||||
| Short name | LC-31 | ||||||||
| Operator | US Air Force | ||||||||
| Launch pad(s) | 2 (incl. silo) | ||||||||
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Launch Complex 31 (LC-31) is a former launch complex at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.
It was built in 1959 with LC-32 for the U.S. Air Force to conduct test launches of the first LGM-30 Minuteman missiles. LC-31 was built next to Navaho complex LC-9, requiring LC-10 to be demolished. These complexes were the first to feature dual launch pads, one of which was subterranean. LC 31 consisted of a blockhouse, static launch pad (31A) and missile silo (31B). The bee-hive-shaped blockhouse is 210 yards from the static pad and 330 yards from the silo.
The Air Force launched four Minuteman missiles from 31A; and 35 from the silo, 31B, between February 1, 1960 and September 23, 1969. Pad 31A was used later by the U.S. Army to test launch twelve Pershing 1a missiles.
The service tower has since been removed and silo filled in, although recovered debris from the space shuttle orbiter Challenger were buried in the silo.[1][2]
2015 opening of the silo
Sometime in 2015, NASA opened the silo and removed several pieces of Challenger's debris to be placed on permanent display Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.[3]
Notes
- ↑ "Shuttle Debris Moved for Burial". Los Angeles Times. Jan 8, 1987. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
- ↑ Ritter, Jim (1986-11-30). "Challenger debris to be buried". Chicago Sun-Times.
- ↑ http://www.mynews13.com/content/news/cfnews13/news/article.html/content/news/articles/cfn/2015/8/2/nasa_space_shuttle_c.html. Missing or empty
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