Stanislav Petrov - The Man Who Saved the World
By Angsuman Chakraborty, Gaea News NetworkSaturday, April 9, 2005
Rarely we hear (outside movies and comics) of a man (or woman) who actually saved the world.
Stanislov Petrov did by preventing a nuclear holocaust and third world war.
Sirens blaring, warning lights flashing, computer screens showing nuclear missiles on their way, one man in charge of a red button labeled “START” - that’s start a retaliatory strike — and a roomful of people at their terminals and switchboards waiting for him to push it.
The direness of the situation can be comprehended from below.
The warning system was by now showing five missile launches in the U.S., headed toward the Soviet Union. The “START” command Petrov was expected to give would have started an irreversible chain reaction in a system geared to launch a counter-strike without human interference.
“The main computer wouldn’t ask me [what to do] — it was made so that it wouldn’t even ask. It was specially constructed in such a way that no one could affect the system’s operations.”
Source: MosNews
May 8, 2005: 6:03 am
There’s a tribute Web site that tells of Stanislav Petrov’s heroism: https://www.brightstarsound.com It has articles, photos, links, an audio/video interview with Stanislav Petrov, etc. — all well worth seeing. |
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