Life After An EMP Attack: No Power, No Food, No Transportation, No Banking And No Internet

http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/life-after-an-emp-attack-no-power-no-food-no-transportation-no-banking-and-no-internet ^

[chessplayer]

Most Americans do not know this, but a single EMP attack could potentially wipe out most of the electronics in the United States and instantly send this nation back to the 1800s. If a nuclear bomb was exploded high enough in the atmosphere over the middle part of the country, the electromagnetic pulse would fry electronic devices from coast to coast. The damage would be millions of times worse than 9/11. Just imagine a world where nobody has power, most cars will not start, the Internet has been fried, the financial system is offline indefinitely, nobody can make any phone calls and virtually all commerce across the entire country is brought to a complete stop. A nation that does not know how to live without technology would be almost entirely stripped of it at that point. Yes, this could really happen. An EMP attack is America's "Achilles heel", and everyone around the world knows it. It is only a matter of time before someone uses an EMP weapon against us, and at this point we are pretty much completely unprepared.

[PA Engineer]

I would venture NO. Once again, the lemmings are running in fear over something that has not been proven as destructive as the fear mongers state.

It is a very real problem, specifically to "long line antennas" representing power lines and pipelines. Particularly vulnerable are substation transformers and SCADA systems. Vehicles are unpredictable. In tests some have been damaged and others have not. Some needed to have the computers reset by simply disconnecting the battery and reconnecting again. Some will still be driving if there is fuel.

Report of the Commission to Assess the Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Attack PDF

[discostu]

They only got 110 pounds up there, not nearly enough for a nuke that’ll pump out enough EMP to do anything. And they’re still about 14 miles short, which doesn’t seem like a lot, but distances straight up are a lot bigger than they sound.

[meatloaf]

According to a government report, if the EMP was a Carrington event, power to some areas wouldn’t be restored for four to ten years,

[driftdiver]

A 1.5mt bomb exploded 250 miles over Kansas would effect the entire US. There are variables which could minimize the damage done on the coasts. Adding a second bomb would solve solve that problem.

[stuartcr]

Isn’t it always just a matter of time before something happens?

[wbill]

Circuit breakers and power strips don’t offer protection against an EMP spike.

But they do protect against power surges, which is where most people assume the damage will come from.

The solar event of 1859 was mentioned on this thread. Power surges were conducted along telegraph lines, shocking operators and causing fires. If the same thing happened today, a breaker would trip. No more power (until it's reset), but no more problem, either.

Now - the EMP pulse would affect things in the immediate area. But fantasy of one massive EMP blast over (for instance) Kansas wiping out the entirety of North America......is just that, a fantasy.

[moehoward]

Well, we don't really know the extent of damage to cars would be. We do know that there would be a distinct correlation between the amount of circuit boards, proximity to blast, and probable damage. The fewer circuit boards, the better. But without a doubt many, many vehicles would remain functional because of simply being parked in a somewhat shielded area.

Thanks for the link, I'll read it fully when I have more time. But after skimming it I'd direct you to Foreign Enemies and Traitors by our own Travis McGee. On top of being a great entertaining read, it contains IMHO an unfortunately accurate assessment of what would be going on after a sustained period without services.

[listenhillary]

How do you build the transformers for substations with no electrical grid? It would be wise if we had a stockpile of them.

[Lockbox]

I have a Diesel power car, old prior to computers...........

[driftdiver]

14 miles is irrelevant, even if it only impacted half the US the damage would be massive.

the payload size is important but you’re assuming they can’t increase the payload size.

Don’t forget Iran is building launch sites down in South America (thanks Chavez) which would place the eastern half of the US in range of a non-orbital payload.

[dfwgator]

But fantasy of one massive EMP blast over (for instance) Kansas wiping out the entirety of North America......is just that, a fantasy.

But it does mean, "fasten your seat belt Dorothy, 'cause Kansas is going bye-bye."

[katana]

I seem to recall that the single largest atmospheric nuclear test ever conducted was by the Soviets and was a stratospheric detonation of something around 50 megatons yield. IIRC it created a second sun in the sky over the USSR for several minutes and was never tried again. The question is whether that test, which was far larger than anything that would likely be used in an EMP attack, has any relevancy since it happened before the digital age. Just don't know. But this whole "EMP will send the US back to the 19th century" sounds suspiciously like the Y2K and AGW drumbeat.

Meanwhile, owning a bicycle or an older spark plug, carburetor, and distributor function car, having a good stock of water, canned goods, and dried foods, an assortment of firearms and ammunition, firewood, and some basic hand operated tools are good planning for any eventuality. Military digital hardware was supposed to be made "EMP hardened" many years ago but who knows whether or to what extent that was accomplished? How much of that found its way for the sake of manufacturing efficiency into consumer goods? If electronics are so vulnerable to EMP why don't the things fail all the time when they are carried through all the electromagnetic fields that surround us on a daily basis?

[driftdiver]

“Now - the EMP pulse would affect things in the immediate area. But fantasy of one massive EMP blast over (for instance) Kansas wiping out the entirety of North America......is just that, a fantas”

Not according to several studies. But thats fine, each to their own.

[Tenacious 1]

EMP doesn’t blow fuses, it blows chips.

What protects chips from absorbing the charge? What is that little thingy that your computer is plugged into? How does it work? Why do they recommend that you connect your electronics (including your TV) to those little thingies with the extra outlets in it?

As I understand it (and I don't claim to be an expert), an EMP amplifies or nullifies the charge that exists in a circuit. But the amplification by % is equal based on what amperage is flowing. Then, products are designed to ground (protect) other components.

I don't understand the magnitude to which a chip running .05 MA could be surged to with an EMP. 15 amps? 1 amp? .10 MA? I don't believe it is like the same bolt of lightning striking every single component at the same time. But enlighten me.

Forgive me for being skeptical about all alarmist potential. These days, I don't trust "studies".

[SampleMan]

It won't send us back to the 1800s.

1940s and 50s technology should work OK (once power is restored or generators brought on-line).

Now for how people will react without their EBT cards working, no 911 service, and little government? Well, probably nirvana in the red states and mad max in the blue states.

[LS]

I recommend my friend Bill Forstchen’s book, “One Second After.” It’s a NYTimes #1 bestseller, and quite chilling.

[driftdiver]

“What protects chips from absorbing the charge? “

Things which don’t react quickly enough to prevent EMP destroying the chip. Also, EMP doesn’t just come in through the power cord, it can be received directly to the chip.

I used to be skeptical as well, and then read up on the subject. I have a electronics background so that helps my understanding.

[Iron Munro]

For anyone not already familiar with this excellent fictionalized account of an EMP event and the aftermath:

One Second After by William R. Forstchen

"New York Times best selling author William R. Forstchen now brings us a story which can be all too terrifyingly real...a story in which one man struggles to save his family and his small North Carolina town after America loses a war, in one second, a war that will send America back to the Dark Ages...A war based upon a weapon, an Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP). A weapon that may already be in the hands of our enemies.

Months before publication, One Second After has already been cited on the floor of Congress as a book all Americans should read, a book already being discussed in the corridors of the Pentagon as a truly realistic look at a weapon and its awesome power to destroy the entire United States, literally within one second. It is a weapon that the Wall Street Journal warns could shatter America. In the tradition of On the Beach, Fail Safe and Testament, this book, set in a typical American town, is a dire warning of what might be our future...and our end."

[cuban leaf]

—That will be able to go as far as a stolen old vehicle will carry them.—
They’ll probably stop off at a few places before they get to me. And that is assuming they can even get the thing out of town. ;)

[DCBryan1]

Re: Single nuke over Kansas

But it does mean, "fasten your seat belt Dorothy, 'cause Kansas is going bye-bye."

Nonsense. My family members used to leave Vegas for the hills and watch nukes cook off in the desert in the 50s and 60s. They are still here: Here is a picture of my great uncle at his 80th birthday party! :

Maybe that's what's wrong with me?! Seriesly ;) though, nukes and EMP don't scare me. Concern: YES! What scares me first and foremost is an ignorant and amoral electorate, and right after that is a pandemic avian flu outbreak with daily antigen shifts. THAT scares the living hell out of me because I've seen THAT wargamed. Results ain't pretty. I've seen lots of low level and regional nuke war games, with some hundred MT exchange, and that doesn't scare me as much as the pandemic antigen shift does or a 2nd Obama term.