A “Broken Arrow” is defined as an unexpected event involving nuclear weapons that results in the accidental launching, firing, detonating, theft or loss of the weapon.
A Soviet early warning system indicated that the United States had launched five nuclear missiles at the USSR. Stanislav Petrov, a Soviet Lieutenant Colonel in charge, decided against procedures not to inform his superiors, reasoning the US would not have launched only five missiles. The alarm turned out to be false, as the reflection of the sun on clouds was misinterpreted by the Soviet satellite. The event was the subject of a documentary film.
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