EMP, Why bother?

[johnwiseman]

I prep for lots of things, but really. There are only a few things that can cause a large enough EMP to seriously worry about right? And those things pretty much mean your dead anyways, right? So why bother worrying about your vehicles ability to withstand an EMP? If the nuke didn't get you, I am pretty sure the radioactive fall out and nuclear winter will. A solar flare big enough and with enough duration to wipe out the planets electronics with EMP would probably wipe out the planet period. Unless I am missing something , I just cant see this as a true concern.

[Banka87]

Neither are zombies

[raptor]

I prep for lots of things, but really. There are only a few things that can cause a large enough EMP to seriously worry about right? And those things pretty much mean your dead anyways, right? So why bother worrying about your vehicles ability to withstand an EMP? If the nuke didn't get you, I am pretty sure the radioactive fall out and nuclear winter will. A solar flare big enough and with enough duration to wipe out the planets electronics with EMP would probably wipe out the planet period. Unless I am missing something , I just cant see this as a true concern.

EMP is a very misunderstood and the internet is full of misinformation about it. That said there are sources for instance sunspots that can cause huge EMP pulses without killing you. A very real risk that you should prepare to deal with related to EMP is loss of electricity. However that is also a risk that comes with a lot of other threats.

[wastan]

Nope, it's all about altitude of detonation (WAY, WAY up there) and a relatively small nuke could, in some estimates, do the job on a continental scale. Nuclear Winter was about lots of big warheads going off at ground level (I don't know if the concept is even still credible given that we've shifted from global cooling to global warming (and modeling has advanced significantly since then)) See: http://www.empcommission.org/docs/A2473 ... on-7MB.pdf for actual facts on the stuff. No big arsenals, no superpower resources needed. Sadly, protecting the civilian infrastructure would be relatively cheap but it just isn't being done.

[RacinRob]

http://solar.physics.montana.edu/press/ ... 9-idx.html

Could happen anyday...

[Murph]

EMP is low on the list of what I think I would possible encounter.

If you prep for other things, you'll probably be able to survive an EMP. (As long as it only fries electronics and not your skin.)

[NoAm]

Neither are zombies

What about aliens though? Haven't you seen War of the Worlds?

[WhoShotJR]

I'll simply say, the more prepared you are for life's uncertainties, the better. Neither you nor I knows what will happen in the future. But so long as I live, my beef stew and rice tastes good.

[Banka87]

Neither are zombies

What about aliens though? Haven't you seen War of the Worlds?

In all seriousness, yea I would actually expect that before zombies.

[Richter]

think of it as preparing for a long power outtage. Prepare for that.

[Vicarious_Lee]

I've decided that EMP is one of the (sadly many, many, disgustingly many) new Pornpocalypse memes that gets thrown about.

Unless someone can show me credible evidence that this is anything more than a theoretical threat, and that an EMP discharge large enough to fry infrastructure might not be accompanied by a subsequent nuclear holocaust large enough to fry people, food, and the entire terrain to the point that topographic maps won't work anymore, creating a SHTF so severe that the effects of EMP are the least of your worries....I'm just not gonna worry.

I'm preparing for power outages. Unless someone can show me credible evidence that an EMP would create power outages more severe and long-lasting than regular SHTF power outages without creating apocalypse conditions of things like radiation, blast waves, and frikkin sharks with frikkin laser beams, I'm going to file the concept in the folder titled:

"Things that are rare enough to not worry about, and that survival is contingent far more on luck than preps that it's not worth worrying about".

[none1]

I've decided that EMP is one of the (sadly many, many, disgustingly many) new Pornpocalypse memes that gets thrown about.

Unless someone can show me credible evidence that this is anything more than a theoretical threat, and that an EMP discharge large enough to fry infrastructure might not be accompanied by a subsequent nuclear holocaust large enough to fry people, food, and the entire terrain to the point that topographic maps won't work anymore, creating a SHTF so severe that the effects of EMP are the least of your worries....I'm just not gonna worry.

I'm preparing for power outages. Unless someone can show me credible evidence that an EMP would create power outages more severe and long-lasting than regular SHTF power outages without creating apocalypse conditions of things like radiation, blast waves, and frikkin sharks with frikkin laser beams, I'm going to file the concept in the folder titled:

"Things that are rare enough to not worry about, and that survival is contingent far more on luck than preps that it's not worth worrying about".

viewtopic.php?f=31&t=58939&hilit=solar

A solar flare the size of the one in 1859 could easily shut down our power grid for a few weeks. The article in that post estimates a solar flare of that magnitude to be about 1 /100, which is WAY more likely than Katrina was ...... and many scientists believe we are movining into a time of higher solar storm activity, so the 1 /100 may
be out of date.


Don't know what you are looking for for "credible data", but there are plenty of articles out there to look at. EMP large enough to ruin all your electrics? Much lower, but a storm powerful enough to knock out our electric grid? Doesn't sound much rarer than a huricane hitting a major city or a large earthquake in southern Cal ....

[Silent Kube]

Meh. While I love my electronics, I've set myself up where I think I could get by without them. I'd probably be a lot more productive too. lol

[kcor_77]

A few of us know the sun has a eleven year cycle. It is comming out of its slumber. Anyway here is a link it will tell you some of what you did or didn't know about the sun and solar storms.

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/a ... 00609.html

[Rhep]

Radioactive Fallout
In addition to other effects, a nuclear weapon detonated in or above the earth’s atmosphere can create an electromagnetic pulse (EMP), a high-density electrical field. An EMP acts like a stroke of lightning but is stronger, faster, and shorter. An EMP can seriously damage electronic devices connected to power sources or antennas. This includes communication systems, computers, electrical appliances, and automobile or aircraft ignition systems. The damage could range from a minor interruption to actual burnout of components. Most electronic equipment within 1,000 miles of a high-altitude nuclear detonation could be affected. Battery-powered radios with short antennas generally would not be affected. Although an EMP is unlikely to harm most people, it could harm those with pacemakers or other implanted electronic devices.
From the FEMA site about Nuclear attacks:
http://www.fema.gov/areyouready/nuclear_blast.shtm

(bold is mine)

[CryHavoc]

http://www.empcommission.org

And the report:

http://www.empcommission.org/docs/A2473 ... on-7MB.pdf

[JakkSchitt]

Would an EMP take out solar panels if they are not tied to the grid?

[Silent Kube]

I would think the panels themselves would be okay. However the various relays and connections between the panels and the battery bank might be effected.

[Glennbo]

I don't agree with a "why bother" attitude. Why bother with anything since we're all gonna die anyway. In fact why not just die now and get it over with?

[Silent Kube]

As far as I know, the only way to be absolutely certain you'll be safe from an emp burst would be to build a Faraday cage around everything. This would be very expensive and downright ugly. Seems like an awful lot of work to prepare for something that isn't very high on my list of possibilities, especially since while there are many theories about what a burst would do, nobody seems to know for certain. I'd rather spend my money prepping for more likely events. Besides, while an emp burst could conceivably set us back a couple hundred years, people did just fine before the power grid. That's why I'm pretty well stocked as far as candles and kerosene go.

[Murph]

I've decided that EMP is one of the (sadly many, many, disgustingly many) new Pornpocalypse memes that gets thrown about.

THIS ^^ +1

[kiwilrdg]

My preps involve hardware that is not dependent on electronics (since I do not have a way to make new chips when they fail) so I am not really worried about EMP.

[Stab74]

I don't agree with a "why bother" attitude. Why bother with anything since we're all gonna die anyway. In fact why not just die now and get it over with?

LOL you should start a website based on this premise!

[SouthPAW]

I've decided that EMP is one of the (sadly many, many, disgustingly many) new Pornpocalypse memes that gets thrown about.

Unless someone can show me credible evidence that this is anything more than a theoretical threat, and that an EMP discharge large enough to fry infrastructure might not be accompanied by a subsequent nuclear holocaust large enough to fry people, food, and the entire terrain to the point that topographic maps won't work anymore, creating a SHTF so severe that the effects of EMP are the least of your worries....I'm just not gonna worry.

I'm preparing for power outages. Unless someone can show me credible evidence that an EMP would create power outages more severe and long-lasting than regular SHTF power outages without creating apocalypse conditions of things like radiation, blast waves, and frikkin sharks with frikkin laser beams, I'm going to file the concept in the folder titled:

"Things that are rare enough to not worry about, and that survival is contingent far more on luck than preps that it's not worth worrying about".

This ^^^^

Especially the part in bold.