Nike Administration Building
During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union competed for influence, and fear of nuclear attack was pervasive. The Nike missile program, with 12 launch sites surrounding San Francisco and 300 nationwide, was part of a sophisticated, national antiaircraft security system. This building served as a headquarters. Nike missiles (1954−70) could fly 2.25 times the speed of sound, but by the late 1960s Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles had a range of 7,500 miles, which rendered the Nike program obsolete.