How Easy It Is For The Us President To Launch A Nuclear Weapon

Editorial Analysis

The steps the president has to take to fire a nuke are involved and complicated, but they work to safeguard against accidental launches and miscommunications.\n\nThat said, the entire process could happen in just a few short minutes. The following is a transcription of the animation.\n\nIt can take the US government just minutes to launch a nuclear weapon. Here's how it would work.\n\nThe president has the sole authority to call for a nuclear strike. Once the call is made, a series of critical steps follow.\n\nThe president first meets with top military advisers. The meeting would take place in the Situation Room. If the president is traveling, a call is made on a secure line.\n\nIf the president still wants to go through with the strike, the order is verified. To authenticate the order, a challenge code is read to the president. It's usually two phonetic letters like Delta-Echo.\n\nThe president then receives the biscuit, a laminated card that's always near the president. The biscuit has the matching response to the challenge code.\n\nThe Pentagon then broadcasts an encoded message to missile crews. The message is only about the length of a standard tweet.\n\nIt includes the war plan, Sealed Authentication System or (SAS) codes, and the actual missile launch codes. When the launch crews get the message they open lock safes to obtain the SAS codes. These codes are compared with the SAS codes included in the message.\n\nIf fired from a submarine the captain, executive officer, and two others authenticate the launch order. Fifteen minutes after receiving the order, the missiles could be ready to launch.\n\nIf fired from land, there are 50 missiles controlled by 5 launch crews in different locations. Each crew votes for the launch by turning their keys at the same time.\n\nThere are five different keys, but only two need to be turned to launch the missiles. In this scenario, the missiles could be ready to launch just minutes after the president's order. Once the missiles are launched, there's no turning back.\n\n--------------------------------------------------\n\nFollow BI Video on Twitter: http://bit.ly/1oS68Zs\nFollow BI on Facebook: http://bit.ly/1W9Lk0n\nRead more: http://www.businessinsider.com/\n\n--------------------------------------------------\n\nBusiness Insider is the fastest growing business news site in the US. Our mission: to tell you all you need to know about the big world around you. The BI Video team focuses on technology, strategy and science with an emphasis on unique storytelling and data that appeals to the next generation of leaders – the digital generation.