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I stumbled upon this document by accident today and started reading the PDF out of curiosity, and wow, I had no idea Russia was so far advanced in (NN)EMP tech,

by rsolva 4y ago

I stumbled upon this document by accident today and started reading the PDF out of curiosity, and wow, I had no idea Russia was so far advanced in (NN)EMP tech, and that EMPs plays such a crucial role in the conflict between east and west. I have heard very little about this through the regular news outlets and nothing from governmental sources. I would love if someone with more knowledge about this topic could put this into context and comment on the feasibility of this cyber-weapon (as it is classified as in the document). EDIT: Direct link to the PDF: https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/AD1124730.pdf https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/AD1124730.pdf

melony 4y ago
There is nothing particularly "magical" about EMPs. Any competent electrical engineer or physicist can build one given the right budget and resources. Shielding against such attacks is also well understood. Ultimately it is down to culture. Your average user on HN understands that it is a bad idea to hook up critical physical infrastructure to the internet, especially post-Stuxnet. But that doesn't mean the infrastructure providers would implement such best practices as they have a very real financial cost. Same thing for shielding against EMPs and solar flares.
- rsolva 4y ago
  Nothing special about EMPs in that sense. What I did not know was this (qoute from page 4): > Russia has what they term “Super-EMP” weapons, nuclear warheads specialized for HEMP attack [0]. Super-EMP warheads have very low explosive yield (10 kilotons or less) but very high gamma yield, which is what generates HEMP. According to Russian military and technical sources, Super-EMP weapons can generate HEMP fields of 100,000 volts/meter or higher, greatly exceeding the U.S. military hardening standard for HEMP (50,000 volts/meter). According to the document, 100,000 volts/meter can also be produced by commercially available products [1] (for much smaller areas) or be built relatively easily by somewhat skilled people, like you point out. The fact that Russia has a first strike weapon potentially rendering Europe and USA defensless is worrying, as this threat is not addressed or taken seriously – according to the paper. Living in a country sharing borders with Russia, I would love to hear that the US actually is in front of this, not lagging behind. [0] High-Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse (HEMP) [1] https://www.apelc.com/rf-suitcase/ https://www.apelc.com/rf-suitcase/

by rsolva 4y ago

melony 4y ago

There is nothing particularly "magical" about EMPs. Any competent electrical engineer or physicist can build one given the right budget and resources. Shielding against such attacks is also well understood. Ultimately it is down to culture. Your average user on HN understands that it is a bad idea to hook up critical physical infrastructure to the internet, especially post-Stuxnet. But that doesn't mean the infrastructure providers would implement such best practices as they have a very real financial cost. Same thing for shielding against EMPs and solar flares.

rsolva 4y ago
Nothing special about EMPs in that sense. What I did not know was this (qoute from page 4): > Russia has what they term “Super-EMP” weapons, nuclear warheads specialized for HEMP attack [0]. Super-EMP warheads have very low explosive yield (10 kilotons or less) but very high gamma yield, which is what generates HEMP. According to Russian military and technical sources, Super-EMP weapons can generate HEMP fields of 100,000 volts/meter or higher, greatly exceeding the U.S. military hardening standard for HEMP (50,000 volts/meter). According to the document, 100,000 volts/meter can also be produced by commercially available products [1] (for much smaller areas) or be built relatively easily by somewhat skilled people, like you point out. The fact that Russia has a first strike weapon potentially rendering Europe and USA defensless is worrying, as this threat is not addressed or taken seriously – according to the paper. Living in a country sharing borders with Russia, I would love to hear that the US actually is in front of this, not lagging behind. [0] High-Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse (HEMP) [1] https://www.apelc.com/rf-suitcase/ https://www.apelc.com/rf-suitcase/