Why does anybody need to think about E.M.P. protection? You only imagine a life in an aluminum shield, sheltering you and your family from the harm of electromagnetic waves from the outer world. The whole world’s infrastructure shattered and failed, no electronics work on the planet, and even the luxury of microwave ovens is a long-forgotten myth. If you want to know how to survive after a severe E.M.P. attack, read on.
We can no longer ignore that an electromagnetic pulse attack is more probable than it has ever been. This is why it’s essential to have an E.M.P. protection plan worked out and specific appliances to have on your preppers list. Do you really trust people telling you everything is under control? Power plants bring us as much risk as benefits. But what else should we do to try to
survive a nuclear attack? North Korean Government will stick to testing its nuclear weapon, which is enough to damage a nation, not saying most countries in the world. Believing that fake-friendly meetings help make the situation less tense is ridiculous. And even if this country does not get to a point where humanity is in danger because of nuclear power, some other terrorist
organizations or countries will. Moreover, apart from a possible human-made E.M.P. event, solar storms and R.F. weapons can cause serious threats.
The time to protect yourself from a massive E.M.P. attack has come.
Are we ready to experience the E.M.P. attack in the United States?
How tremendous will the destruction be?
What can be done to protect yourself and survive?
What’s the best E.M.P. protection plan?
What actually is E.M.P.?
You’ll find the answers to these questions in the article.
Here is a list of the most important E.M.P. topics to look into:
E.M.P. — Finding Out What It Stands For
The Weapon Which Can Cause A Massive E.M.P. Attack
High Altitude Detonations
The Worst E.M.P. Strike —What It Will be Like
Three Ways To Help Yourself Stay Alive When An E.M.P. strike Is There.
The Weapon Which Can Cause A Massive E.M.P. Attack
Evaluating The Seriousness Of The Damage
An E.M.P. Protection Plan Which Will Save Your Electronic Devices
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Electromagnetic Pulse Protective Shielding
We deal with electricity 24/7, and it seems safe because the only things we normally see are wires. Although, it can be more dangerous than just an electrical current kept inside some isolating material. An electrical current is produced when a conductor moves through a magnetic field. When a moving magnetic field passes a conductor, it creates a current, and this is a phenomenon that we call an E.M.P. or an electromagnetic pulse.
This might sound like an extract from a dull university lecture you’ve been listening to someday, but that’s what it really is —an E.M.P. is an extensive burst of electromagnetic energy, extremely harmful to all types of electronic equipment. An E.M.P. attack is something that can leave all the wiring destroyed.
Millions of people are not informed about the threat and the E.M.P. protection everyone can use, as it is not much you can read in English about it. Keep on reading the article to find out more.
E.M.P. Attack Weapons of Mass Range
A nuclear power plant will never be surrounded by people wishing to live nearby because they understand a certain danger. The hydrogen bomb explosion also sounds horrifying because we know the circumstances that electromagnetic radiation causes, with the gamma rays getting absorbed in the air or ground. You will definitely need to find the nearest fallout shelter. Meanwhile, the detonation of the nuclear weapon also creates a large release of nuclear E.M.P., which can burn out all the electronics on its way. But if you have a pacemaker, tested to certain high power military and U.L. standards, installed.
It should be mentioned that a nuclear E.M.P. consists of three components:
E1 Electromagnetic Pulse
The moment when gamma radiation gets released in an explosion, it ionizes atoms in the atmosphere, and an early-time (E1) high-altitude E.M.P. (HEMP) is generated. An E1 extends vastly and reaches the eEarth’smagnetic field straightaway, which creates microwaves. The microwaves strike the EEarth’ssurface hard, which leads to the induction of high voltages in the conductors. H.V. induction is likely to cause a massive electrical breakdown, which will obviously be immensely damaging for electronics.
E2 Electromagnetic Pulse
E2 generated by the nuclear weapon is similar to electromagnetic impulses which produce lightning strikes. This type of E.M.P. is almost as fast and dangerous as E1, but fortunately, the U.S.’s infrastructure is mostly ready to withstand the effects of such harm.
By the way, lightning also causes Electromagnetic Interference (or E.M.I.), which affects the functioning of electronic devices, though it usually occurs in a small frequency band.
E3 Electromagnetic Pulse
The late-time high-altitude Electromagnetic Pulse, or simply an E3 component, is different from the first two as it is slower and not so dangerous. A solar flare produces a proportional amount of energetic particles, causing a severe threat to electronics, power lines, and transformers. The E3 component is quite similar to a geomagnetic storm caused by a regular solar flare.
The latter is normally followed by a coronal mass ejection (C.M.E.), leading to a temporary disturbance of the Earth’s electromagnetic field, but this doesn’t require specific E.M.P. protection.
E.M.P. Protection: High Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse Detonations
As most military nuclear weapons are supposed to harm certain enemies in an exact location as significantly as possible, they are rarely intended to be high-altitude. Though let’s evaluate: an E.M.P. travels along the line of sight; that’s why if it occurs high above the ground, it can be destructive to huge areas. When the nuclear bomb explodes tens of kilometres high up in the atmosphere, it will extend miles away! E.M.P. becomes less intense with distance but still enough to damage most types of electronics.
The point mentioned above should make you think something over: how probable is it that a group of terrorists would aim at leaving millions of people with no access to technology and telephone lines if there is such an option?
But a nuclear attack is not the only potential source for creating an E.M.P. event made by people. There also exist special EMP-generating devices, which are called explosively pumped flux compression generators. The principle is generating an electromagnetic pulse in a coil rolled around a metal core while simultaneously compressing the coil into the core using explosives.
This helps to achieve a compression of the electromagnetic field.
This has finally happened. You heard the alarm and got ready to protect the electronics you possess. The E.M.P. strike occurred and burned out every electronic device not only in your area but thousands of miles away. You’d been precautious and put your cellphone inside a hand-made Faraday Cage. Getting your mobile out of a galvanized storage can make you the only person out of thousands to have functioning equipment. But how are you going to use it?
Even if you’ve managed to save your solar panel charger and some other devices, you won’t be able to use them because an E.M.P. strike has destroyed the cell phone towers, utility distribution systems, generators, solar panels, and windmills. There is no internet connection because of power loss, and you can’t use your cellphone to call your family and friends. Such a situation can’t be overcome in days. Perhaps it’s going to last for years. The life of millions of people has changed in a minute. But you can do something to experience much less harm than others.
E.M.P. Strike and Protection Measures
Faraday cages will save your laptop, but will you need it if the consequences of an E.M.P. attack are much worse than you expected and using electricity at your home becomes impossible?
We definitely should consider more thoughtful protection plans to survive after a devastating E.M.P. strike, such as a survival retreat.
1. E.M.P. Shielding Preparation Option 1
Evaluate the possible consequences and prepare to get back to the 1860s. The world didn’t know anything about using planes, cars and other forms of transport we’re now so accustomed to. People weren’t using microwave ovens, cookers, and washing machines. It was impossible to chat with a friend online because “online” didn’t exist. Still, if the world faces a massive emp attack, we all will have to develop certain skills to get used to a new way of living.
2. E.M.P. Protective Preparation Option 2
Create as many Faraday cages as possible and store your devices there. Don’t forget chargers and generators to live through a period the world loses electricity.
3. E.M.P. Protection Preparation Option 3
Install E.M.P. shields on your home and transport.
Each family possesses most of the electrical appliances below:
A Refrigerator
A Freezer
A Washing Machine
A Dishwasher
A TV
A Microwave Oven
A Computer
Will all of them in the list be fried in case of an E.M.P. attack?
If you have an E.M.P. shield, it will shunt even a massive electrical surge and protect your electrical equipment. Even if the sources of electricity aren’t available during a period of time, when the world is back to normal life, you’ll still have all the necessary devices at home, unlike those people who never thought of E.M.P. protection! Keep in mind that shields must meet the military standard (Mil-Std 188 125).
Moreover, if you have solar panels, you can install an E.M.P. shield stunting device to protect them. This will mean that you’ll be one of the very few people to have access to the electricity supply!
An E.M.P. shield can be installed on your vehicle as well, so, fortunately, you can protect it from becoming a metal mess and get back to using it once the power is restored. Besides, a non-damaged vehicle could be filled up at the gas station.
Here’s some information about how E.M.P. shields work:
We’ve made sure that E.M.P. attacks are a possibility tomorrow. Isn’t the investment in the protection of your electrical appliances, your vehicle, and the home itself worth staying confident that you’ll make it through the other day our world is turned upside down?
No option is better than another one; only sticking to all of them, keeping in mind all the danger we might face, you’ll be able to come through.
Purchasing E.M.P. shields will help you save all the expensive household appliances until infrastructures get back to everyday life.
Building Faraday cages will backup your devices.
Learning survival skills is the most challenging option, though it’s most obvious and never a bad idea. Understanding how to manage your everyday life in post-emp attack conditions is essential while most people are shocked.
The U.S. Government admits that 9 out of 10 citizens might die within a year after a massive E.M.P. attack. Destroying a nation doesn’t have to be an instant nuclear weapon explosion. That’s much easier and safer for the enemies to make the attack milder, as, eventually, the created tension will lead to the people fighting with each other for energy, drinking water, and all the other ordinary things once we’ve lost them. The U.S. nation is used to comfort and unprepared for surviving a collapse.
It’s time to take the E.M.P. threats seriously and learn surviving skills, which will be vitally important when dealing with E.M.P. effects.
Electromagnetic Pulse Damage Estimation
The world becomes a more dangerous place each day, and we’re closer to facing the risks of E.M.P. attacks. It’s utterly important to focus on E.M.P. protection because you will find all the unshielded devices burned out in the end otherwise.
Look at the list of what we’re about to lose in case of E.M.P. strikes:
Power Grids
Laptops
Tablets
Smartphones
Mobile Phone Towers
Landline Telephones
Desktop Computers
Mainframe Computers
Routers
Jet Aircraft Systems
Air Traffic Control Systems
Banking Systems
Hospital Diagnostic Machines
T.V.s
Internet
Refrigerators
Everything With Inserted Microchips
And it can be continued.
This perspective seems insane and horrifying. A massive E.M.P. attack can make a huge part of the nation. Let’s say the population of Washington DC or L.A. will get back to the 19th century, where people will have to try to survive without most of the items they’re accustomed to using in their everyday lives.
Management of E.M.P. effects is a huge branch of electromagnetic compatibility engineering. An E.M.P. simulator has been created to generate the transient E.M.P. pulse and investigate its propagation throughout the modelled domain. Millions of dollars are being invested in creating the pulses and working out what kind of plan will protect infrastructures if humanity faces an attack.
But here’s what you need to know about what you personally can do to defend yourself and your home from electromagnetic Pulse. Read on!
E.M.P. Protection Plan Which Will Save Your Electronic Devices
Although the probable harm is significant, there are some ways to protect your devices if there are E.M.P. attacks. One of them is the installation of electrical shields. If the wire is applied to a grounded shield, it will get the burst of an electromagnetic pulse and then release it into the ground. That definitely is the solution to defend cables, but will the microelectronics be out of danger?
E.M.P. Protective Faraday Cage
In 1836 Michael Faraday invented an enclosure used to block electromagnetic fields. A Faraday cage or Faraday shield is a container made of conducting material. If the metal mesh is connected to electricity, the external electrical field won’t be distributed to the cage’s inner part. Thus, there won’t be any harmful effect on electrical equipment placed inside a Faraday cage.
There is also a way to strengthen a Faraday cage by nesting it, covering the cage with some other cage, which will help you keep your things stand the E.M.P., E.M.I., or RFI (radio frequency interference) effects.
Faraday cages can be bought or quite made at home. Basically, you’re able to protect your devices from E.M.P. attacks by covering them with aluminum foil, which already will be a trivial Faraday cage. Make sure that the device is wrapped with no gaps. Otherwise, the electromagnetic Pulse will still reach it. Mind that extra layers of foil won’t protect the device unless you’ve covered it completely. Moreover, if you wish to wrap the device several times, you’ll need to put some insulation between aluminum foil layers. It may be an isolating material, such as cardboard.
Another way to make a Faraday cage is by lining the aluminum foil sheets around a cardboard box and putting it inside a trash can. If the trash can lid closes properly, there is no need to worry about your electronics. You can also use a garbage can without aluminum foil to store your devices. Though, make sure that it is made of galvanized steel.
Install E.M.P. shields to protect your home and all the devices inside from an electromagnetic pulse, which definitely will burn all the uncovered equipment left. Buy an E.M.P. shield to cover your vehicle. If solar panels are on top of your house, don’t leave them unshielded to keep your electronics functioning when the power grid is unavailable.
Check out the standards your emp protection shield should meet. Remember that they will also protect your home from a lightning strike!
Step 2. Backup preparation before E.M.P. strike.
Provide yourself with reliable backups for your mobile phone, flashlights, solar phone charges, tablets, etc. Store them in a self-made Faraday cage or buy a Faraday bag. Remember that if you want to remain to be able to communicate with someone distantly, you’ll need to provide yourself with devices like walkie talkies (better keep them inside a Faraday Cage, but actually vacuum tubes, which are the main part of these radios, are very resistant to even a high-frequency E.M.P. attack), and flashlights (better not with L.E.D. lights, as they are very susceptible to E.M.P.).
Step 3. Do E.M.P. shielding research
No one should underestimate the importance of learning off-the-grid survival skills. Don’t miss the opportunity to find out more about how to survive when energy sources are impossible to access. Look through relevant literature and videos.
E.M.P. events could leave you isolated or cut off basic food, water, and medical supplies for a long-term period. Make sure that you’ve prevented getting helpless: prepare a stock of most needed things in advance.
The way our ancestors lived is now considered to be extreme. Nevertheless, we could return to this reality, and you may want to learn more about it.
Take care and do everything you can to prepare and follow a tactical plan which will keep you out of danger in any disaster.
The E.M.P. threats are real, but all these shouldn’t keep you up at night. Each point mentioned in the article will help you get ready for the possibility of an E.M.P. attack not only mentally but, most importantly, practically. Stay safe.
Frequently Asked Questions — F.A.Q.
Can you protect your car from E.M.P. threats?
Your vehicle will be damaged in an E.M.P. event unless you purchase and install a special shield, meeting the Mil-Std 188 125, which is a reliable kind of protection even for such a big and complex machine.
Will the Faraday cage protect from electromagnetic pulse strikes?
A Faraday cage is a comparably simple continuous covering made to protect electronic devices from a magnetic field. A Faraday cage won’t save your home, but it undoubtedly will save your cell phone.
What will work after an E.M.P. attack?
The infrastructures of most countries aren’t ready for a massive E.M.P. attack. Likely, our nation won’t have access to a power grid after an E.M.P. attack. However, shielded electronics or the ones kept in Faraday cages will stay usable. There will be only survival guns and homemade ammunition available.
What kinds of E.M.P. shielding measures exist?
Study the information you find about living through a disaster and learn survival skills. Prepare food, water, and medicine supply for at least a month. Protect your electronics with Faraday bags or store them in a Faraday cage. Shield your home and vehicles.
What material can shield electronics from an E.M.P.?
Surprisingly simple as it is, simple kitchen aluminum foil can serve as a great shield against Electromagnetic Pulse strikes. It is really effortless to get and stockpile. However, one should wrap the electric appliance in several layers so that the E.M.P. attack is less threatening. All in all, it is a cheap and tested method of e.m.p. shield measures.
Will mobile phones work after an E.M.P.?
In case of an E.M.P. attack, your mobile phone can be crucial to keep safe, as well as many other electronics. To be able to use your device and contact emergencies and your associates, you should ensure your mobile phone’s secure operation. To avoid further difficulties — an E.M.P. attack can certainly lead to many of them — get yourself some radio system, an E.M.P. protective bag, and follow the instructions from this article.
Will E.M.P. destroy solar panels?
Unfortunately, yes. Some E.M.P. attacks can be as severe as to completely cut you off your gadgets, and solar panels are no exclusion here. While ones can be suspended from work only temporarily, others can be fully kicked out forever.
Will an E.M.P. destroy electronics that are unplugged?
While electromagnetic Pulse contains no radioactive substances and is more or less safe for people, it can put all your gadgets in an out-of-order regime. Those which are unplugged can withstand E.M.P. strikes. However, it is also a question of the electromagnetic Pulse’s amplitude.
How long would it take to recover from an E.M.P.?
They say it can take us, people, from four to ten long years to completely recuperate after the E.M.P. attack, economically speaking. The electric grid of the U.S.A., pitifully, doesn’t have its back covered.
Can an E.M.P. affect the brain?
It is true that your brain can be adjusted inevitably during an E.M.P. attack, according to the tests done on laboratory rats. The damages can take a long time to cure and encompass cognitive changes lasting long-term. The good news is that the non-thermal effects of E.M.P. attacks are less dangerous.
A former USA Army sergeant and a highly educated survivalist and prepper with a degree and interest in Engineering and Electronics, Mike Millerson applies his extensive expertise in survivalism, homesteading, backpacking, hiking and hunting, spreading his deep knowledge about handling emergencies and prepping for them reasonably and effectively.
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