Introduction The Norwegian rocket incident, also known as the Black Brant scare, occurred on 25 January 1995 when a team of Norwegian and American scientists launched a Black Brant XII four-stage sounding rocket from the Andøya Rocket Range off the northwestern coast of Norway. The rocket carried scientific equipment to study the aurora borealis over… Read More
Introduction On 26 September 1983, during the Cold War, the Soviet nuclear early warning system Oko reported the launch of one intercontinental ballistic missile with four more missiles behind it, from the United States. These missile attack warnings were suspected to be false alarms by Stanislav Petrov, an engineer of the Soviet Air Defence Forces… Read More
Introduction The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (abbreviated to ICAN, pronounced /ˈaɪkæn/ EYE-kan) is a global civil society coalition working to promote adherence to and full implementation of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. The campaign helped bring about this treaty. ICAN was launched in 2007. In 2022, it counted 661 partner… Read More
Introduction A permissive action link (PAL) is an access control security device for nuclear weapons. Its purpose is to prevent unauthorised arming or detonation of a nuclear weapon. The United States Department of Defence definition is: A device included in or attached to a nuclear weapon system to preclude arming and/or launching until the insertion… Read More
Introduction The letters of last resort are four identically-worded handwritten letters from the prime minister of the United Kingdom (UK) to the commanding officers of the four British ballistic missile submarines. Refer to Operation Looking Glass, Dead Hand, and the Samson Option. They contain orders on what action to take if an enemy nuclear strike… Read More
Introduction In nuclear strategy, a counterforce target is one that has a military value, such as a launch silo for intercontinental ballistic missiles, an airbase at which nuclear-armed bombers are stationed, a homeport for ballistic missile submarines, or a command and control installation. The intent of a counterforce strategy (attacking counterforce targets with nuclear weapons)… Read More
Introduction The phrase “balance of terror” is usually, but not invariably, used in reference to the nuclear arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Refer to Mutual Assured Destruction. Outline It describes the tenuous peace that existed between the two countries as a result of both governments being… Read More
Boot Camp & Military Fitness Institute 