“Is there a response that is automatic?”
Russia, like other countries to include us, has nuclear vessels and silos all over the world. So there are a lot of first response problems with trying to get enough to stop them before their launch. And less than two minutes isn’t a lot of time. (Sub launch) So with little luck in shooting one down, especially when a couple of thousand are coming at you, the ball game is already decided. And as long as the fear is a deterrent, the system works. If they no longer respect us, they will get stupid enough to try it. And Biden has helped that cause with losing that respect.
As for stand down, Russia does use a “dead hand” system of AI to launch. They’ve been using it for many years. We do not use “dead hand” but we work on a stand down arrangement that requires most of the prep to be computer generated. The silo rats are the final act and they are told to proceed until told to stand down. But if they are eliminated, the response ceases there if not past fail safe and will have to be picked up elsewhere.
An AI system was tested at Vandenberg and successfully launched an unarmed Minuteman III which re-entered and hit near the Marshall Islands about 4200 miles away. But the people calling the shots still don’t trust the computer completely. They still want the keys turned simultaneous.
wy69
Thank you for the detailed explanation!