The Real Threat of Electromagnetic Pulse Weapons

Congress recently heard testimony about the use of electromagnetic pulse (EMP) weapons and the threat they may pose to the United States and other countries should they fall into the hands of unfriendly regimes. Even one such weapon could knock out our massive electrical and technological infrastructure, effectively sending the continental U.S. back to the 19th century in a matter of hours, with a recovery time of months or even years.

A single nuclear weapon exploded at a high altitude above the continental United States would interact with the Earth’s atmosphere, ionosphere, and magnetic field to produce an electromagnetic pulse, which would create electrical currents in the Earth. One nuclear warhead could cripple the entire country, knocking out electrical power and circuit boards and rendering domestic communications inoperable. EMP effects are both direct—catastrophically affecting electrical systems—and indirect, from the damage that the destroyed electronics controls then inflict on the systems in which they are embedded. Indirect effects from EMPs can be even more disastrous than the direct effects, and can take much longer to correct.

Many scientists, intelligence sources, and western missile industry experts believe that Iran is already testing ballistic EMP missiles designed to render America powerless, effectively neutralizing the world’s lone superpower. The radical Shiite regime has conducted successful tests of ballistic missiles capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and detonating it by remote control while it is still at a high altitude. Intelligence analysts were stunned when Iran openly described the mid-flight detonations of missiles fired from ships on the Caspian Sea. William R. Graham, who served as President Ronald Reagan’s top science advisor, says that the only explanation for such tests is to prepare for the deployment of EMPs. Since the tests have been successful, Iran could possibly have that capability as soon as it has one nuclear bomb ready to aim such a missile. And a strategic ally of Iran, North Korea, already claims to have developed nuclear bomb technology.

Even primitive Scud missiles could be used to fire EMP weapons, and there is currently a glut of such missiles on the world market. Hitting a precise target with a nuclear warhead mounted on a Scud might prove difficult, but there would be very little problem with simply launching the missile and detonating the weapon in the atmosphere. And by using an EMP weapon, there would be no need to risk trying to smuggle a nuclear weapon over the border or target a specific city—all a terrorist would need to do is launch a cheap missile from a ship in international waters and be sure it climbs a few miles into the air before being detonated. The al-Quaida terrorist organization is believed to own about 80 such ships.

Until recently, many analysts believed the nuclear threat to the United States from other countries was limited to the ability of terrorists to penetrate the borders or ports in order to target a major city. Such threats continue to be of grave concern for America and always will be. But in light of the recent missile tests by Iran and the ever-growing postulations about rogue nations developing EMP weaponry, many people’s fears have shifted to the more frightening consequences posed by the potential use of EMPs.

The purpose of such an attack is not to kill people, but to kill electrons. If electrical power is knocked out, circuit boards fried, and telecommunications disrupted, then the financial system will break down quickly and food, water, and fuel will become scarce. Few people would die right away, but the loss of power would have a cascading effect on all aspects of society. Lack of refrigeration would leave food rotting in warehouses, the inability to sanitize and distribute water would threaten public health, the lack of fuel availability would leave vehicles stranded when they run out of gas, resulting in severely limited transportation capability, and the increasing chaos would result in a fairly rapid breakdown of social order.

The EMP threat is not a new one; the Soviet Union experimented with the idea decades ago as having the potential to be a super-weapon against the U.S. But now it is more difficult to detect potential sources of EMP threats because there are terrorist groups that have no allegiance to a particular country, as well as groups that are motivated to attack other countries without regard for their own safety. Such potential sources for EMP attacks are unpredictable and difficult to deter. The United States and other major players in the global arena may be facing clever and unscrupulous adversaries that could bring the global community to its knees.

Last month, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security chaired by Arizona Senator John Kyl held a hearing on the EMP threat. The EMP commission, chaired by Dr. William Graham, said that strengthening key infrastructure systems and procuring vital backup equipment such as transformers and generators is both feasible and—compared with the threat—relatively inexpensive.

The report concluded: "The Sept. 11 commission report stated that our biggest failure was one of 'imagination.' No one imagined that terrorists would do what they did on Sept. 11. Today few Americans can conceive of the possibility that terrorists could bring our society to its knees by destroying everything we rely on that runs on electricity. But this time we've been warned, and we'd better be prepared to respond."