The Limits of Safety: Organizations, Accidents, and Nuclear Weapons

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Princeton University Press, May 5, 2020 - History - 302 pages

Environmental tragedies such as Chernobyl and the Exxon Valdez remind us that catastrophic accidents are always possible in a world full of hazardous technologies. Yet, the apparently excellent safety record with nuclear weapons has led scholars, policy-makers, and the public alike to believe that nuclear arsenals can serve as a secure deterrent for the foreseeable future. In this provocative book, Scott Sagan challenges such optimism. Sagan's research into formerly classified archives penetrates the veil of safety that has surrounded U.S. nuclear weapons and reveals a hidden history of frightening "close calls" to disaster.

 

Contents

Expecting the Unexpected
3
The Origins of Accidents
11
Nuclear Weapons Safety during the Cuban Missile Crisis
53
Intelligence and Warning during the Cuban Missile Crisis
117
Redundancy and Reliability The 1968 Thule Bomber Accident
156
Learning by Trial and Terror
204
The Limits of Safety
250
Index
281
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About the author (2020)

Scott D. Sagan, Assistant Professor of Political Science at Stanford University, is the author of Moving Targets: Nuclear Strategy and National Security (Princeton).

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