Bücher von Annie Jacobsen

The definitive, character-driven history of CIA covert operations and U.S. government-sponsored assassinations, from the author of the Pulitzer Prize finalist The Pentagon's Brain

There is only one scenario other than an asteroid strike that could end the world as we know it in a matter of hours: nuclear war. And it could start in as little as 26 minutes and 40 seconds from now¿An edge-of-your-seat non-fiction thriller for readers of American Prometheus by Kai Bird or Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham.The first rule of nuclear war is that there are no rules.Until now, no one outside official circles has known exactly what would happen if a rogue state launched a nuclear missile at the Pentagon. Second by second and minute by minute, these are the real-life protocols that choreograph the end of civilization as we know it.If a single nuclear missile is launched, it provokes two dozen in return. Frantic calls over secure lines work to confirm the worst as armoured helicopters are scrambled outside. Decisions that affect hundreds of millions of lives need to be made within six minutes, based on partial information, in the knowledge that once launched, nothing is capable of halting the destruction.Because the plans for General Nuclear War are among the most classified secrets held by the United States government, this book takes the reader up to the razor¿s edge of what can legally be known. Based on dozens of new interviews with military and civilian experts who have built the weapons, been privy to the response plans, and taken responsibility for crucial decisions, this is the only account of what a nuclear exchange would look like.Nuclear War is at once a compulsive non-fiction thriller and a powerful argument that we must rid ourselves of these world-ending weapons for ever.

"Der nukleare Krieg beginnt mit einem Punkt auf einem Radarbildschirm." Investigativ-Journalistin Annie Jacobsen entwirft ein Szenario von dreimal 24 Minuten: So lange dauert es vom ersten Entdecken eines atomaren Marschflugkörpers mit Ziel USA bis zum dann unausweichlichen und vernichtenden Gegenschlag und zum Ende der Welt wie wir sie kennen. Was passiert als Nächstes? Wieviel Zeit bleibt dem US-amerikanischen Präsidenten für die Entscheidung, wie der Gegenschlag aussieht? Gibt es einen funktionierenden Abwehrschirm? Sind die Kommunikationswege zwischen den Atommächten im Ernstfall sicher? Ist weltweite Eskalation unvermeidbar? Das Szenario ist fiktiv. Die zugrundeliegenden Parameter, die Befehlsketten, in Kraft gesetzten Regeln und die technischen Möglichkeiten mit ihren grausamen Konsequenzen beruhen auf den Fakten, die die Autorin im Austausch mit Experten und von Insider-Quellen gesammelt hat. Das Ergebnis ist ein atemloses Leseerlebnis voller hochinteressanter Erkenntnisse, erschreckend, faszinierend und informativ.

The INSTANT New York Times bestseller Instant Los Angeles Times bestsellerShortlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize“In Nuclear War: A Scenario, Annie Jacobsen gives us a vivid picture of what could happen if our nuclear guardians fail…Terrifying.”—Wall Street Journal There is only one scenario other than an asteroid strike that could end the world as we know it in a matter of hours: nuclear war. And one of the triggers for that war would be a nuclear missile inbound toward the United States.   Every generation, a journalist has looked deep into the heart of the nuclear military establishment: the technologies, the safeguards, the plans, and the risks. These investigations are vital to how we understand the world we really live in—where one nuclear missile will beget one in return, and where the choreography of the world’s end requires massive decisions made on seconds’ notice with information that is only as good as the intelligence we have.   Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen’s Nuclear War: A Scenario explores this ticking-clock scenario, based on dozens of exclusive new interviews with military and civilian experts who have built the weapons, have been privy to the response plans, and have been responsible for those decisions should they have needed to be made. Nuclear War: A Scenario examines the handful of minutes after a nuclear missile launch. It is essential reading, and unlike any other book in its depth and urgency.

The definitive history of DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, from the author of the New York Times bestseller Area 51

It is the most famous military installation in the world. And it doesn't exist. Located a mere seventy-five miles outside of Las Vegas in Nevada's desert, the base has never been acknowledged by the U.S. government-but Area 51 has captivated imaginations for decades. Myths and hypotheses about Area 51 have long abounded, thanks to the intense secrecy enveloping it. Some claim it is home to aliens, underground tunnel systems, and nuclear facilities. Others believe that the lunar landing itself was filmed there. The prevalence of these rumors stems from the fact that no credible insider has ever divulged the truth about his time inside the base. Until now. Annie Jacobsen had exclusive access to nineteen men who served the base proudly and secretly for decades and are now aged 75-92, and unprecedented access to fifty-five additional military and intelligence personnel, scientists, pilots, and engineers linked to the secret base, thirty-two of whom lived and worked there for extended periods. In Area 51, Jacobsen shows us what has really gone on in the Nevada desert, from testing nuclear weapons to building super-secret, supersonic jets to pursuing the War on Terror. This is the first book based on interviews with eye witnesses to Area 51 history, which makes it the seminal work on the subject. Filled with formerly classified information that has never been accurately decoded for the public, Area 51 weaves the mysterious activities of the top-secret base into a gripping narrative, showing that facts are often more fantastic than fiction, especially when the distinction is almost impossible to make.