# 1995: Only four minutes from nuclear war

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1995-only-four-minutes-from-nuclear-war/77780>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 23, 2001, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1995-only-four-minutes-from-nuclear-war/77780 "2001-08-23T20:23:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1995-only-four-minutes-from-nuclear-war/77780/1 "2001-08-23T20:23:07Z")

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I read a blurb in a local alternative paper that Russian radars mistook a satellite launch from Norway for a nuke, and as a result we were only four minutes away from The Big One.

What’s the SD?

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**Author:** ![conway](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ec9cab/32.png) [@conway](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/conway)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1995-only-four-minutes-from-nuclear-war/77780/2 "2001-08-23T20:44:55Z")

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Here’s a little [note](http://www.psr.org/de-alerting-issuebrief.htm) about it

And another from the [Washington Post](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/coldwar/shatter031598a.htm)

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**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2001, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1995-only-four-minutes-from-nuclear-war/77780/3 "2001-08-23T23:01:13Z")

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[20 Mishaps That Might Have Started Accidental Nuclear War](http://www.nuclearfiles.org/anw/)

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**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\
**Post date:** [August 24, 2001, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/1995-only-four-minutes-from-nuclear-war/77780/4 "2001-08-24T07:46:01Z")

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A little additional information: This rocket launch was a routine part of a study of the Northern Lights. The same procedures had been used to warn the Soviet and then the Russian government prior to earlier launches as part of the same project, and had always worked. For reasons unknown, the Russian Embassy failed to pass on the information that time. Other rockets have been launched since then without incident.