AFF/ELECTROMAGNETIC PULSE: EMP ATTACK CAUSES MASS DESTRUCTION

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Jack Spencer, Policy Analyst for Defense and National Security in The Heritage Foundation. May 26, 2000 No. 1372 AMERICA'S VULNERABILITY TO A DIFFERENT NUCLEAR THREAT: AN ELECTROMAGNETIC PULSE http://www.heritage.org/library/backgrounder/bg1372.html

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The scientific principles behind generating a high-altitude electromagnetic pulse are relatively easy to understand. A nuclear weapon is detonated between 25 miles and 300 miles above the Earth's surface; the radiation reaching the atmosphere interacts with air molecules to produce high-energy electrons that speed across the Earth's magnetic field as an instantaneous, invisible electromagnetic pulse. A nuclear device must be detonated above the Earth's atmosphere in order to generate the high-altitude EMP effects.

An EMP can have devastating consequences for developed countries, because any metallic conductor in the area affected becomes a "receiver" for the powerful energy burst released by the blast. Such receivers include anything with electronic wiring--from airplanes and automobiles to computers, railroad tracks, and communication lines. If systems connected to these receivers are not protected, they will be damaged by the intense energy pulse. Indeed, depending on the strength of the pulse and the vulnerability of the equipment, the effects could range from interrupted phone conversations and radio interference to the melting of components in every type of electrical system.

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In the 1980s, Americans feared neutron bombs that could kill everyone but leave buildings, roads, and cars intact. Today, Americans should fear a different kind of nuclear threat that can instantaneously destroy power grids, electronic systems, and communications along an entire coast but spare people.

This destruction would result from the split-second release of a high-energy electromagnetic pulse (EMP) after a nuclear bomb is detonated miles above the Earth and outside the atmosphere. Within a week of the blast, although no one would be instantly killed, the disruption of food and water supplies and health care caused by the shutdown of transportation, computers, networks, electronic equipment, and communication systems would have serious consequences for millions of people. 2 Recovering from such an attack could take years.

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14 But according to Dr. Gordon Soper, a former Defense Department official responsible for nuclear, chemical, and biological defense programs who testified before the House Small Business Committee, "an EMP attack would result in an unacceptable disruption and damage to our commercial electronic infrastructure." 15 Almost without exception, experts agree that a high-altitude EMP would damage America's electronics. They disagree about the extent of the damage and what should be done to prevent it.

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Little has been done to protect electrical systems from this threat beyond the nation's nuclear war-fighting infrastructure. The reason: During the Cold War, only the Soviet Union had the ability to mount an EMP attack against the United States, and if it had launched such an attack, the result would have been nuclear war. It made no sense to spend money to protect civil infrastructure from an electromagnetic pulse since little would be left standing after a nuclear bomb landed on U.S. soil.

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The commercial mass production of advanced electronic systems has made high-quality electronic devices exceedingly affordable, and slashed defense budgets force the U.S. military to look for cost savings wherever possible. Thus, the military increasingly has been purchasing commercial products for use in U.S. weapons systems. The new, advanced tactical Tomahawk cruise missile, for example, will use commercial electronics. 10 This disturbing fact is highlighted by the comments of the deputy chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's Command Center, Stanley Jakubiak: "[T]he military has...taken a simplistic approach. We've...assumed that all commercial equipment would fail under an EMP pulse." 11 Not only are many military systems vulnerable, but so are the systems that Americans rely on every day.

EMP WEAPONS DO NOT NEED TO BE CLOSE TO THEIR TARGET

New Scientist 7/05/2000 Electromagnetic Weapons,

http://www.newscientist.com/nl/0701/end.html http://www.infowar.com/wmd/00/wmd_070500a_j.shtml //VT2002acsln

Another big plus for people thinking of using these weapons is that microwaves pass easily through the atmosphere. This means that you can set off your weapon and inflict damage without having to get close to your target.