Wasteland Survivalist: A Scientific Guide to Post-Apocalyptic Survival

At the same time, in the Xitaipingyang sea area, at a depth of 400 meters.

The clock on the strategic nuclear submarine "Marshal Suvorov" pointed to 8:40.

Captain Sergei ran his fingertips along the bronze statue of the Virgin Mary on the edge of the control panel.

This is his 29th day of combat readiness patrol in the Sea of ​​Khovdsk.

The circulating air inside the boat kept blowing out of the vents, carrying the sour smell of metal mixed with sweat.

"The third timed communication window has opened."

The communications officer's hoarse voice echoed in the command center, while the longwave receiver continuously emitted static.

"The signal of the deadly hand... has not yet been detected."

Inside the command center, all the crew members began to breathe heavily.

Strategic nuclear submarines are a very special type of weapon.

Because almost all human-made weapons have a prerequisite for firing.

That was a clear attack order from the superior.

Only nuclear submarines pull the trigger after communication with their superiors is lost.

Communication between submarines and command centers relies heavily on longwave radio.

Seawater has a significant attenuation effect on electromagnetic waves.

Only long waves with good penetrating power can penetrate water depths of several hundred meters.

However, long waves have extremely low information transmission rates, and it often takes a long time to complete a single communication.

Information is also easily lost during transmission, requiring repeated reception.

To prevent misinterpretation of information, a unique communication method was developed.

Before setting sail, the command center will make an agreement with the nuclear submarine to periodically send "survival signals".

It's like telling the submarine, "I'm still alive, don't make a move yet."

To prevent enemy deciphering, it is usually a specific string of random characters.

What if one day, this special radio wave can no longer be received?

That would mean the outbreak of a full-scale nuclear war.

The submarine would assume that its homeland had been subjected to a saturation nuclear attack and that its command system had been completely destroyed.

Then, all the submarine-launched nuclear missiles on board will be fired in one go according to the pre-arranged plan.

Since our great motherland has been destroyed, there is no need for this world to continue to exist.

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council have engaged in numerous nuclear weapons negotiations over the past few decades.

Several fruitful nuclear disarmament agreements have been reached.

Land-based delivery vehicles, missile silos, and the number of nuclear warheads are all negotiable.

Nuclear submarines are the only exception; neither side has ever dared to bring them to the negotiating table.

This is because sea-based nuclear forces have the highest survival rate among the three nuclear strike capabilities.

Submarines roaming the deep ocean are extremely difficult to detect, let alone destroy.

Nuclear submarines serve as the "ultimate insurance," and their existence ensures that any preemptive nuclear strike faces an unbearable risk of retaliation.

Even if all land-based and air-based nuclear forces are destroyed.

The sea-based nuclear force can still guarantee the complete annihilation of the opponent when seeking revenge.

Seeing the captain fall silent, the deputy captain, Andrei, took out the operational regulations.

"Article 7.1: 96 consecutive hours of no contact shall be deemed the destruction of the national command system."

He pointed to a red sealed box containing the key to launch the missile.

Do you remember the Kola Peninsula incident?

Captain Sergei stared intently at his subordinate's hands.

"I remember that the blizzard caused the 'Seahawk' to lose power for two days, forcing the fleet to suspend combat readiness patrols and return to port."

Strategic longwave radio stations have massive antennas, requiring an area of ​​tens of square kilometers.

The antenna network of the "Sea Eagle" longwave radio station is over 160 kilometers long.

Located in the remote Murmansk, within the Arctic Circle.

Because the Far East is mostly mountainous, there is a lack of suitable plains for building longwave radio stations.

The strategic nuclear submarines in the eastern waters of Russia need to travel more than 6000 kilometers to communicate with the ground.

"The submarine immediately surfaced to 30 meters and attempted to contact the command center using low-frequency communication."

Sergei frowned and gave the order.

He recalled the magnitude 8.7 earthquake that struck the Kamchatka Peninsula two years ago.

The earthquake severely damaged the port of Pebask, which happened to be the main base of his fleet.

Due to the fleet's severe lack of funding, the repair work on various supporting facilities has not yet been completed and accepted.

This made him highly skeptical of the reliability of the relay communication system.

"Captain, I must remind you, this is a violation of regulations. It will reveal our location!"

"If it's a radio malfunction, as is customary, headquarters will dispatch aircraft to drop communication buoys and carry out the orders."

With the order given, the submarine began to surface.

"It has been switched to the VLF (Very Low Frequency) communication band."

After a lengthy ascent operation, the communications officer reported on the progress.

Ten minutes passed, and the communication system remained unresponsive.

"Captain, no valid signal received."

"Immediately switch to ELF (Extremely Low Frequency) signals and attempt to contact the satellite!"

Twenty minutes passed, and the communication system remained silent.

It's stuck on the first step of the handshake protocol.

"How is this possible?"

Sergei looked shocked.

A deathly silence fell over the command center, as everyone wondered what had happened.

Suddenly, a series of signals appeared on the sonar screen.

A series of loud "bangs" echoed, striking the hull of the boat like giant hammers.

"Report! Metallic echo detected at 11 o'clock! Doppler signature... suspected enemy destroyer!"

Amid the sonar crew's exclamations, the deputy captain, Andrei, immediately sounded the red battle alarm.

Sergei rushed to the red box and entered a password.

The mechanical lock on the launch control console popped open with a crisp click.

Two metal keys appeared before my eyes.

Without time to hesitate, Sergei and Andrei each picked up a key and inserted it into the keyholes on the left and right sides of the control panel.

"Three, two, one..."

The two men simultaneously turned the key according to the procedure, and the launch switch was fully unlocked.

Sergei lifted the central metal cover, revealing a red launch button.

"Final system self-check complete."

The weapons officer's voice trembled.

"Target database has been loaded: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, New York, Peanuts..."

Seeing that Sergei was still hesitating, Andrei grasped his right hand.

The two exchanged a glance, then pressed the button that represented death together.

The Marshal Suvorov trembled violently, as if a giant beast were giving birth to a dead cub.

With a hiss of hydraulic system, the missile burst through the launch tube and rose toward the sea surface, enveloped in an air curtain.

Sixteen Bulava intercontinental ballistic missiles soared into the sky in succession.

The exhaust flames illuminated a Japanese "oceanographic research vessel" floating on the sea.

On the stern deck of the ship named "Bigo", two dismantled communication buoys are prominently displayed.

Just over ten minutes later, a chain reaction was triggered.

More and more ballistic missiles are rising from all over the world, bursting out of the atmosphere one after another.

History has entered a new chapter...