Der Moment, in dem die UdSSR für immer hätte verschwinden können

In the late 1940s and 1950s, the United States initially held an absolute monopoly on nuclear weapons and later an overwhelming advantage in the means to deliver them. American strategic bombers could reach virtually any point in Soviet territory, while the possibilities for a counterstrike remained extremely limited. So why didn't World War III break out during this period of maximum vulnerability? What exactly prevented both sides from taking a disastrous step during the most critical moments in Berlin, Korea, and Cuba? In this video, we analyze in detail the history of the nuclear confrontation between the two superpowers from 1945 to 1963—based on hard facts, technical data on the systems used, and declassified archival documents, including assessments by specialists from the main Soviet nuclear weapons center, Arzamas-16. : ... In this issue: The End of the Monopoly: How Soviet physicists developed an exact copy of the American "Fat Man" bomb—and the role intelligence played in the process. The Berlin Crisis of 1948: Why the US, despite an arsenal of more than 120 atomic bombs, never used a casus belli. The Balance of Power in Numbers: The actual ratio of nuclear capabilities in 1953 and 1957. The Technological Confrontation in the Air: Why the Soviet MiG-15 couldn't intercept the American B-36 bomber at its practical service ceiling. An Astonishing Contract: How Rolls-Royce engines found their way onto Soviet military aircraft. The Supply Problem: The Soviet Tu-95 versus the American Nike-Ajax air defense system and supersonic interceptors with nuclear air-to-air missiles. The End of the Vulnerability Era: The transition from the vulnerable R-7 to the R-16 missile with storable propellant components in February 1963. How the concept of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) came about. This is the story of fifteen years in which the fate of the world hung by a thread—and how the tense work of engineers, scientists, and military personnel on both sides averted global catastrophe.