Just so everybody understands. We don’t have an electrical grid. We have lots of little grids that sometimes connect to other grids for power sharing.
You cannot protect the grid. Our grid is unbelievably open to a ICBM attack. Russia could take out our grids quite easily. Everywhere we have a Damn or any other power source, a well aimed ICBM could easily turn it off. Then there are the miles of unprotected wire that transports electricity to and between cities. All very much wide open and always will be.
The question is whether or not North Korea could get a rocket across the pacific. NO. Could they hit anything if they could get it here. NO. Could they explode a bomb on the target. NO.
Could they cause real harm to South Korea, Yes. Could they do damage to Japan, Yes but not as much.
Should China help us take out North Korea, yes. Why would they help us. Because our Navy would go away. We have promised to protect both Japan and South Korea. If North Korea is no longer a threat, the US would scale down and spend our defense money elsewhere. China would love that.
But lets be clear. North Korea is no threat to our electricity grid today. And China and Russia could easily take out our electricity. Russia especially. And there is no ability to make it safe from attack of either of those two countries.
But lets be clear. North Korea is no threat to our electricity grid today. And China and Russia could easily take out our electricity. Russia especially. And there is no ability to make it safe from attack of either of those two countries.
Mostly true, but the electrical grid would be only one of our problems in a nuclear war. We should not forget the China’s ability to strike us was increased exponentially by Clinton’s willingness to sell them advanced guidance technology.
The threat from Russia has existed for 60 years. We trust them to be somewhat rational. The more believable threat to the grid comes from three sources.
First, the Sun. Extreme solar flares can induce widespread natural EMP that could take down the grid and make it very difficult to bring back up. The latest event that hit the Earth was in 1859. Another missed us in 2012.
Second, a physical attack on the most vulnerable parts of the U.S. Grid, the high voltage power transformers at the end of our high voltage transmision lines. There are only a couple of thousand of these transformers, concentrated at substations.
One analysis is that taking out 9 critical substation could take out the entire grid, because of critical interdependencies that exist. A couple hundred terrorists could target the hundred critical substations at once.
While a little hardening has been done, nearly all of these substations are unguarded.
Third, an EMP attack could knock out the grid. For a national attack two or three nuclear devices would be necesary, and they have to be detonated in space to be effective over large distances.
Fourth, cyber attacks are possible, but are occurring daily. Consequently, defenses are constantly improving for this threat, IMHO.
http://securethegrid.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Grid-Vulnerability-Brief1.pdf
We really do not have thousands of independent grids. We do not have much spare capacity, and that makes all those little grids interdependent. We have a few large, interdependent systems. Texas has an independent system, for example.
What would it take to protect from these threats? Estimates are from 2 billion to 20 billion. Pretty small potatoes considering what is at stake.