Exactly 25 years ago on September 26th 1983 the world was doomed.
Tempers ran high in that period of the cold war. Both parties of conflict were racing for a superior armament (after all it is much more beneficial to be able to destroy the world 1765 times than just 1764 times), just three weeks before Soviet jets had shot down Korean Air Lines Flight 007 killing 269 people which had penetrated into Soviet airspace, and in the west military exercise "Able Archer 83" was launched, the preparation for a nuclear war, which by the KGB was interpreted as a preparation for the first strike.
And on September 26th 1983 the world was doomed. Soviet satellites detected and reported the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile in the US that was heading for the Soviet Union.
The information was received by Stanislav Petrov, an Air Defence lieutenant colonel, was the officer on duty at the Serpukhov-15 bunker near Moscow on that day. By all orders and regulations Petrov would have been obliged to pass on the information immediately and launch the "counterstrike". But in this situation of unimaginable pressure Petrov used his common sense which told him that no nuclear first strike would be conducted with just a single or just a few nuclear missiles but with many. Even after the launch of four more missiles was reported (and without any possibility to verify the truth or falseness of the reports) Petrov did not follow the regular procedure and did not start the alarm that would, in all likelihood have triggered a nuclear war.
The reports about the launched missiles turned out to be a wrong interpretation of sunlight reflections on clouds near a US air force base in Montana. No missile had been launched. Still Petrov took a huge personal risk in not obeying the orders that would have almost certainly caused a nuclear war.
He was not commended for his action, but neither did he receive any praise and henceforth he was regarded as an unreliable officer. In 2004 he was awarded the World Citizen Award along with a trophy and US$1000 for saving the existence of mankind. Stanislav Yevgrafovich Petrov is probably one of the so far unsung heroes of our age. He is living in very modest (edging to poverty) circumstances in Frjasino. The impending release of further documents may rise awareness of a man who had the rare courage not to obey orders but his common sense.
