Nuclear War: A Scenario

Annie Jacobsen constructs a minute-by-minute timeline of a fictional nuclear exchange triggered by a North Korean strike on Washington, D.C. The narrative relies on declassified documents and interviews with retired military commanders, scientists, and civil defense officials to detail the rapid-fire decision-making process within the Pentagon and the White House. Jacobsen describes the technical protocols of the "Nuclear Football," the automated nature of ballistic missile detection systems, and the precise physical effects of thermal radiation and electromagnetic pulses on urban infrastructure and human biology during the initial seventy-two minutes of a global catastrophe.

This book serves researchers and citizens interested in strategic defense policy and internal government continuity plans. Readers gain a technical understanding of the "Launch on Warning" doctrine and the inherent limitations of missile interceptor networks. The text provides a sobering look at how rigid command structures and short communication windows could escalate a localized incident into total planetary extinction. It leaves the audience with a clear map of the logistical reality behind the theory of Mutually Assured Destruction and the current state of global nuclear readiness.