Dead Hand

Not to be confused with Dead man's hand.
For other uses, see Dead Hand (disambiguation).

Dead Hand
Place of origin Soviet Union
Service history
In serviceJanuary 1985–present[not verified in body]
Used by Russian Strategic Rocket Forces
Production history
No. built1

Dead Hand, also known as Perimeter (Russian: Система «Периметр», romanized: Sistema "Perimetr", lit. '"Perimeter" System', with the GRAU Index 15E601, Cyrillic: 15Э601),[1] is a Cold War–era automatic or semi-automatic nuclear weapons control system (similar in concept to the American AN/DRC-8 Emergency Rocket Communications System) that was constructed by the Soviet Union.[2] The system remains in use in the post-Soviet Russian Federation.[3][4] An example of fail-deadly and mutual assured destruction deterrence, it can initiate the launch of the Russian intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) by sending a pre-entered highest-authority order from the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Strategic Missile Force Management to command posts and individual silos if a nuclear strike is detected by seismic, light, radioactivity, and pressure sensors even with the commanding elements fully destroyed. By most accounts, it is normally switched off and is supposed to be activated during times of crisis; however, as of 2009, it was said to remain fully functional and able to serve its purpose when needed.[5][6] Accounts differ on whether the system, once activated by the country's leadership, will launch missiles fully automatic or if there is still a human approval process involved, with newer sources suggesting the latter.

  1. ^ Yarynich, Valery E. (20 September 2004). "C3: Nuclear Command, Control Cooperation". Air & Space Power Journal. Archived from the original on 25 May 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  2. ^ "The Origin of Buzzer Monolyths, The Soviet Nuclear Defense System, and The Myth of the Dead Hand". Numbers stations. The NSRIC. Archived from the original on 1 February 2015. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  3. ^ "Russia, Military Power: Building a Military to Support Great Power Aspirations" (PDF). Defense Intelligence Agency. 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 December 2019. Retrieved 5 October 2017.
  4. ^ Bender, Jeremy (5 September 2014). "Russia May Still Have An Automated Nuclear Launch System Aimed Across The Northern Hemisphere". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 21 June 2015. Retrieved 21 June 2015.
  5. ^ Thompson, Nicholas (21 September 2009). "Inside the Apocalyptic Soviet Doomsday Machine". Wired. Vol. 17, no. 10. Archived from the original on 18 April 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014.[dead link]
  6. ^ Hoffman, David E. (2009). The Dead Hand: The Untold Story of the Cold War Arms Race and Its Dangerous Legacy. New York City: Anchor Books. p. 477. ISBN 978-0-307-38784-4. And it would be wise for Russia to disconnect and decommission Perimeter, the semiautomatic command system for nuclear retaliation.