The Black Mesa Research Facility, or B.M.R.F. for short and colloquially known as Black Mesa, was a scientific research complex built around an abandoned Cold War ICBM launch silo in the New Mexico desert in the United States. The site was the location of the Black Mesa Incident, the result of a Resonance cascade which would have catastrophic ramifications upon the planet for years to come. The facility was destroyed by the Mark IV Thermonuclear Device some day after the cascade


The Black Mesa facility was apparently built over several decommissioned ICBM launching and testing silo complexes probably constructed during the 1950s, which was converted into a vast civilian institute for the research of almost every conceivable scientific discipline. Several Half-Life texture files' names contain the word "fifties", suggesting the facility is as old as from the 1950s. Some areas are also described by characters such as Rosenberg as "old" or "abandoned"; several areas of the complex are badly run-down despite the obvious fact that they are still in use. However the surface areas of Black Mesa feature more modern construction


Black Mesa undertakes its various scientific researches in the facility, which is a very high-security complex, as each employee is required to undergo a series of rigorous security checks to access most areas. Security guards, carrying firearms and trained for emergencies, are present in all of the facility. The complex is also equipped with retinal scanners and alarms, as well as heavy blast doors that may shut down in case of fire, explosion or other event. Black Mesa can be completely sealed from the outside


The facility is self-sufficient, housing its own: ventilation, cold and hot water, central heating, sanitation, drainage, and power generation systems including a Hydro-Electric Dam and multiple types of electrical generators and reactors, some using nuclear technology. Chemical processing plants are also seen and as the facility is located within the desert water treatment plants are required to recycle waste water






The various Black Mesa facilities are loosely grouped into seven Sectors (although many areas visited during the games have no known Sector; it is actually unknown if every single area has to belong to a Sector), as well as various Areas and Levels, all linked together by the Black Mesa Transit System or Sector E Materials Transport. Each sector has a letter ranging from A to G, and bears the name of its main facility. Thus Sector E Biodome Complex does not have only alien study labs, and Sector D Administration does not have only administrative offices.