Big Shell

From the Metal Gear Wiki

The Big Shell was a huge marine decontamination facility established approximately 30 kilometers offshore from Manhattan. Composed of two units, Shell 1 and Shell 2, the structure was made up of a central building surrounded by six struts.

According to the government, the sinking of the U.S.S Discovery in New York harbor in 2007 caused a large quantity of crude oil to be discharged into the sea. The government immediately responded with the construction of an oil fence. Using chlorine derivatives, they sterilized the entire zone of polluted sea and constructed a huge marine decontamination facility. Biological reactors managed in nodes were installed inside the Big Shell, and it became a symbol of environmental protection.

In actuality, Big Shell was merely a cover story, disguising the construction of Arsenal Gear. The oil was intentionally spilt later by a duplicate tanker sent by the Patriots and was then sunken in the same area. The original tanker containing no crude oil. Rather, it was being used to house Metal Gear RAY.

The decontamination effort that followed was staged in order to complete tests on Arsenal Gear and the AI, GW, as part of the S3 plan. It was because of this that the Big Shell was chosen for the location of Raiden's engineered mission (See Big Shell Incident).

During the Big Shell incident, the structure was severely damaged by various battles fought. It was destroyed altogether when Arsenal Gear was activated.