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What confirmed Petrov's suspicion of a false alarm?

U.S. denial
Satellite malfunction
Ground radar
Spy report

Answer

Satellite malfunction confirmed Petrov's suspicion of a false alarm. The Soviet early-warning system detected what appeared to be multiple incoming nuclear missiles, but Petrov noticed inconsistencies in the data. He suspected a system error, and his doubts were confirmed when satellites failed to detect any missile launches. Petrov's decision to disregard the false alarm potentially averted a catastrophic nuclear war.