[Steely Tom]

In 1962, we set off at least three high-altitude hydrogen bombs over the western Pacific. One of them, called Starfish Prime, was detonated at an altitude of 250 miles, and caused electric system outages on Hawaii. It also caused permanent damage to at least three orbiting satellites, including the first Telstar satellite, which was made unusable as a result.

These shots were made because the USSR broke the nuclear test-ban treaty when it detonated the 50-MT Czar Bomba hydrogen bomb over Novaya Zemlya in the Arctic Ocean.

[tjd1454]

What is worrisome about Starfish Prime is that it caused electrical damage in Hawaii in the pre-electric age. Imagine the catastrophic damage it would cause today.