Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Urban exploration in Missouri
jferg
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Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by jferg »

Greetings all - I'm new here, and it's been quite a while since I've done any explo. I live in Kansas City now, and haven't done much here, but did my fair share the 5 years I was at school in Rolla.

The best thing we found in Rolla was the steam tunnels under campus - while I don't have any pix of it, here's what I can remember of them: (There's a campus map at http://www.umr.edu/uploads/media/campusmap_01.pdf (unfortunately it's a 3D-ish thing in PDF format).)

We entered late one night via an access doorway in the floor in the entryway of the Mechanical Engineering (ME) Annex (it's good to have roommates with keys to buildings, though the door itself was unlocked). There was also a point of entry in the Formula Racing workshop in the Mechanical Engineering building that we used another time. (This was about 7 years ago - I believe they've secured some of the entry points by now, but there may be others if you know the right people.) From there, we went west, under the ME building. Much of the tunnel was large enough I could walk upright in it. Under the ME building there was a fork, which led north to the power plant, and the tunnel also continued westward under the Rolla Building and the University center, ending with a locked door to Schrenk Hall (ChemE Building). It also branched to the south, ending in a gate which opened into the basement of Norwood Hall. (We could have climbed over the gate, had I been a couple dozen pounds lighter and in better shape, but we were getting tired, so didn't.) We headed back to the fork to the power plant. There was also a large (20ft x 20ft), low (4-ft height), open area under the ME building, where there were some serious cable junctions and some spare spools of fiber-optic cable for the campus network.

We headed towards the power plant, where we found a spot where the tunnel crossed a driveway, so that a truck could be driven in and things could be loaded into the tunnel. Unfortunately, the power plant is manned 24/7, so we couldn't stick around there long, but we did jump down and run across the driveway to the tunnel on the other side without being noticed. From there, the tunnel continued on to end in a room in the basement of Harris Hall, where there were some spare desks and probably the biggest cockroach I've ever seen. We headed back, slipped across the driveway without being seen again, and then went back to the point where we'd come in. Heading the other direction, there wasn't much of interest - there's a grate in the sidewalk in front of the library where we climbed up the ladder to get some fresh air (the grate was locked) - steam tunnels are quite warm, given all that steam. :) From there, there was a branch that led south, towards Fulton Hall, but was gated off, and the tunnel continued east, towards the library, but was also gated off - so not much else to do there. So, from there, we decided to call it a night.

In the time I spent at Rolla, we also went caving a few times - one of my roommates was on the Cave Rescue Team. I remember there being one small cave that was actually in the median strip of I-44, just west of Rolla - we found the entry, but I was too overweight at the time to squeeze through. There was another, much larger one near Waynesville, I believe, though it could have been Jerome. I remember having to park under a bridge near the river and walk, because we couldn't park at the entry to the cave. The entryway to the cave was large, and my roommate, who was guiding, claimed that it had been used as a speakeasy during prohibition - there was some tile drainpipe laid across the floor in a few places. The cave went much further back, through, and we went probably half a mile or more deep before getting to a place where the large people in the party couldn't squeeze through easily.

We did a small amount of other explo while I was in school, but those were probably the two biggest bits. Since I don't get the opportunity much now, it's nice to be able to hear others' stories.
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by White Rabbit »

That's awesome, dude. I've heard a lot about the UMR tunnels. There used to be a guy named bone that would post to one of the steam tunnel newsgroups. Apparently, they found all kinds of stuff there on campus. Not just the steam tunnels, but they supposedly found a hidden room in one of the buildings. Lots of other things I can't remember, though. Bone eventually got busted and had to take his website down, though, I think.
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by ropingk »

UMR actully has it own small necular reactor
Since the School was once called the School Of Mines and it is a well known that there are many mines and tunnles all around Rolla if a person had the right contacts it could be a great place to explore I work with a guy that just graduiated from UMR last year i will ask him if he has any information on the tunnles or mines
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Re: RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by jferg »

ropingk wrote:UMR actully has it own small necular reactor
Since the School was once called the School Of Mines and it is a well known that there are many mines and tunnles all around Rolla if a person had the right contacts it could be a great place to explore I work with a guy that just graduiated from UMR last year i will ask him if he has any information on the tunnles or mines
Yeah - one thing we noticed was that the gates and whatnot in the tunnels became more...serious... as we got closer to the reactor - though I don't know if they actually run all the way over to the reactor, because the ground the reactor is on is significantly lower than the ground around it.
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by White Rabbit »

Wait a minute...

UMR has a nuclear reactor on campus? :shock:
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by Willard »

Yes UMR has a nuclear reactor on campus. I went to school there for a year and a half before dropping out (I decided engineering wasn't for me). I know a few people that still go there... some of my friends have made it a habit of being perpetual students there :-D Some of my friends are working on their masters and some are working on PhD's.
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Re: RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by jferg »

White Rabbit wrote:Wait a minute...

UMR has a nuclear reactor on campus? :shock:
*laughs* It's a very small research reactor - I believe MU also used to have one, but ISTR that it's been shut down since. The UMR reactor isn't much to look at, but the website is here: http://campus.umr.edu/reactor/
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by ropingk »

It is a small reactor I think it generates some of the power that they use on campus but I am not real sure about that ,I do know that they use a olympic size swimming pool as a cooling tank, and they used to give a small tour but i think that has stoped
I have a few friends that go there and if you are with the right person ( which is usall just a student)you can pretty much go anywhere on campus without any questions
I can tell you this, the power plant is the place to explore it is huge the main problem is it actually one of the few places that is off limits and it is manned 24/7
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by Sertile »

Hey, they also have a scale model Stonehenge... it's a pretty weird place. I was going to check out the reactor once, which I'm told is open to the public, but I chickened out once I got there... you had to wear a certain kind of pants and go through an airlock and everything, and I just decided that wasn't for me.

As for mines, I know the University does own at least one, the "Experimental Mine," which they give tours of freely. You're supposed to make an appointment, but I just showed up one day and one of the miners showed me around. It was pretty awesome. They also have a "haunted mine" there during the Halloween season which is basically just an underground haunted house. I've never been to that, but I'll bet it's way better than the Hotel of Terror.
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by ropingk »

I dont know about the hotel of terror but I have been to the haunted mine a few times and it is ok they make it out to be way more than it is but thats is way all haunted houses are, and it is a real mine so that part is cool
It is a lot easier to actually walk around on campus than i thought it would be, :shock: i was with a friend and we went all in a bunch of building walked into a couple classes and everything and not one time did any one ask whay are you doing here but then that is probaly how it is at most schools, :shock:
Like most places if you have a friend who can show you around it is a fun place to explore
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

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I used to work at that reactor for a couple years before I changed majors at UMR... it's really very cool, and they'll give you tours whenever they're open. But, the best time to go is when they've scheduled a "Blue Glow Tour", which is when they take it up to full power and the core emits Cerenkov Radiation. Here's the link:

http://campus.umr.edu/reactor/cerenkov.html

They also have a lesser known nuclear reactor, which is located in the basement of Fulton Hall. It is a sub-critical reactor, basically a few rods w/ uranium slugs in some hard water that you can drop in and study how the geometry affects reactions. They will not take you to see this, and there is a super alarm system that was installed after they lost a uranium slug. I also worked in the Health Physics dept doing the nuclear leak testing and reporting for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The big reactor is pretty much the safest place you could ever want to be... you'll get more radiation from your smoke detector. The core is under 30 ft of water. The subcritical reactor was always the one I was freaked out about but I never got much of a dose recorded on my film badges. You should definitely tour it if you're ever in Rolla.

Another cool place to explore - there is an experimental mine behind Martin Springs Rd. I was on the mine rescue team there. If you go during Halloween, they do a haunted mine tour that is really spooky. Tours at the mine are available if you call ahead. Call (573) 341-6406, and ask for Jimmy Taylor.
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by bobcat »

MU has a rather large nuclear engineering program and, i believe, the largest research reactor in the nation.

It is definitely not shut down.

http://web.missouri.edu/~umcreactorweb/ ... main.shtml
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Re: RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by crazydrummerdude »

tiamat wrote:I used to work at that reactor for a couple years before I changed majors at UMR... it's really very cool, and they'll give you tours whenever they're open. But, the best time to go is when they've scheduled a "Blue Glow Tour", which is when they take it up to full power and the core emits Cerenkov Radiation. Here's the link:

http://campus.umr.edu/reactor/cerenkov.html

They also have a lesser known nuclear reactor, which is located in the basement of Fulton Hall. It is a sub-critical reactor, basically a few rods w/ uranium slugs in some hard water that you can drop in and study how the geometry affects reactions. They will not take you to see this, and there is a super alarm system that was installed after they lost a uranium slug. I also worked in the Health Physics dept doing the nuclear leak testing and reporting for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The big reactor is pretty much the safest place you could ever want to be... you'll get more radiation from your smoke detector. The core is under 30 ft of water. The subcritical reactor was always the one I was freaked out about but I never got much of a dose recorded on my film badges. You should definitely tour it if you're ever in Rolla.

Another cool place to explore - there is an experimental mine behind Martin Springs Rd. I was on the mine rescue team there. If you go during Halloween, they do a haunted mine tour that is really spooky. Tours at the mine are available if you call ahead. Call (573) 341-6406, and ask for Jimmy Taylor.
It's interesting that you didn't correct 'ropingk.' The reactor where they do the "Blue Glow Tour" is used for research only. The heat/energy emitted from it is an unwanted byproduct; not used for power/electricity/etc.

..and that it would be tough to call a 10'x20' hole 30' deep an "olympic sized swimming pool."

ANYWAYS... Tours are still given, and if you're lucky, you can even do a cheesy little radiation/half-life experiment on some aluminum run down to the reactor.

Even running at 10%, the reactor gives off a cool blue glow. I am surprised by what you say.. that they take it up to 100% power! I didn't think they did that.

I did not know about the other, smaller reactor, though.. in Fulton.

The experimental mine is definitely cool to get into. So is the little quarry they're making. But, without Dr. Worsey, or the explosives.. I wouldn't see.. 1) much point of risking it (there is intense! security), and 2) it wouldn't be nearly as fun.
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Re: RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

Post by Former User #1 »

[quote="crazydrummerdude

It's interesting that you didn't correct 'ropingk.' The reactor where they do the "Blue Glow Tour" is used for research only. The heat/energy emitted from it is an unwanted byproduct; not used for power/electricity/etc.

..and that it would be tough to call a 10'x20' hole 30' deep an "olympic sized swimming pool."

ANYWAYS... Tours are still given, and if you're lucky, you can even do a cheesy little radiation/half-life experiment on some aluminum run down to the reactor.

Even running at 10%, the reactor gives off a cool blue glow. I am surprised by what you say.. that they take it up to 100% power! I didn't think they did that.

I did not know about the other, smaller reactor, though.. in Fulton.

The experimental mine is definitely cool to get into. So is the little quarry they're making. But, without Dr. Worsey, or the explosives.. I wouldn't see.. 1) much point of risking it (there is intense! security), and 2) it wouldn't be nearly as fun.[/quote]

Guess I wasn't paying attention to what ropingk said... but, then again, it would get annoying and boring to go around correcting people on here... :wink:

Didn't say 100% power... by definition, a subcritical reactor can't... but "full power"... is kind of a loose term you can find on their web page... it's the highest they ever take it up, which is for the blue-glow tours. And, yes, they love to do the aluminum thing for freshman or potential freshman. If only all the labs were like that! I wouldn't go check out the smaller reactor... it's the only place on campus you're actually very likely to get a dose. And there's the alarm...

The quarry is very cool... it was a booger to survey, though. And you're right, Worsey is the coolest, though a maniac Brit. I'd never break in... as a mining engineering alum, I don't think it would be necessary... they'll do anything to get $$, including tours. Did you ever get to see Worsey blow up the chicken w/ a blasting cap? I decided he was clinically insane at that point, which is part of his charm. Man, I miss college... lol
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RE: Intro / UMR Steam Tunnels

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Huh
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