Posted on 12/27/2006 7:40:27 AM PST by pabianice
December 27, 2006: Iran continues to predict the imminent destruction of Israel, and promises to do what it can to help make that happen. Israel responds with dark threats of countermeasures that will prevent Iranian plans from working. Most people think that the most likely Israeli response is air strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. But Israel has another weapon available, but one with serious side effects. Israel has a satellite launch capability that could put a nuclear weapon in low orbit (about 200 kilometers up). Once over Iran, the nuclear bomb could be detonated, and create an EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse), which would destroy most of the military and civilian electronics in Iran. That would be a major setback to the Iranian nuclear weapons program, and the Iranian economy. There would be ugly side effects. The nuclear blast would also create a temporary belt of intense radiation, which would destroy or damage many of the low earth orbit satellites up there. There would be $100 billion, or more, in damage to these satellites, and several years of disrupted communications, GPS and weather prediction service until all the damaged satellites could be replaced. It's this collateral damage, more than anything else, that protects Iran from this kind of attack.
Then again, what's to prevent Iran or North Korea from setting off a nuke in low orbit, just to mess up everyone's satellites? Sounds like a great extortion opportunity. This is one reason more and more satellites are being hardened to resist the kind of radiation surge high altitude EMP would produce. But most of the stuff in low orbit is not hardened, and even the birds that are so protected, are not invulnerable to EMP, just less vulnerable.
How do coils, condensers, starter and alternator windings fare in an EMP?
In the older vehicles, only the radio (and other installed electronics such as a radar detector) along with the diodes in the alternator would be affected. Why a magneto/generator ignition system would survive more readily than an alternator type system.
Would a well grounded .30 or .50 cal ammo can be enough faraday cage to protect a couple of rebuild kits with diodes for the alternators? Or would the protection need to be more elaborate?
If you welded it shut I believe it would be fine. Make sure there are no holes anywhere. Use a good ground as well.
If you want to ensure your bases are covered, I would wrap another one in waterporrf plasic and have it sitting on the bottom of a nearby pond. Like I said, 15 feet of water will do the job.
I still know how to use an ADF... :-)
Yeah, and a directional EMP would sure make freeway drivers a lot more polite...
Yep, the radio-based navaids would be toast.
So, here's to pilotage!
Got my plotter and a watch and a chart.
way behind the curve...ever heard of the scalar inferometer beam weapon?
That will work perfect. Thanks for the info.
> radio-based navaids would be toast <
No disagreement when we're talking about IC-based equipment. I do think, however, that tube-using transmitters and receivers have greater survivability in the face of an EMP. So let's not throw away all those antique radios in the attic. And stock up on your supply of 6Y6's, 807's, 5U4G's and the like!
(Just be sure you replace those big capacitors in the power supplies before you plug anything "antique" into the mains. Old capacitors often leak and lose most of their oil over the years.)
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