EMP Attack On Power Grid Could Kill 90% of the population

[Morreion]

EMP Attack On Power Grid Could Kill 9-In-10 (IBD)

Expert testimony before Congress on Thursday warned that an electromagnetic pulse attack on our power grid and electronic infrastructure could leave most Americans dead and the U.S. in another century.

That dire warning came from Peter Vincent Pry, a member of the Congressional EMP Commission and executive director of the Task Force on National and Homeland Security.

He testified in front of the House Homeland Security Committee's Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection and Security Technologies that an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) event could wipe out 90% of America's population.

"Natural EMP from a geomagnetic superstorm, like the 1859 Carrington Event or 1921 Railroad Storm, and nuclear EMP attack from terrorists or rogue states, as practiced by North Korea during the nuclear crisis of 2013, are both existential threats that could kill 9-of-10 Americans through starvation, disease and societal collapse," the Washington Free Beacon quoted Pry as saying.

As we reported early last year, Pry, a former CIA nuclear weapons analyst, believes that North Korea's recent seemingly low-yield nuclear tests and launch of a low-orbit satellite may in fact be preparations for a future electromagnetic pulse attack.

..."Airplanes would fall from the sky; most cars would be inoperable; electrical devices would fail. Water, sewer and electrical networks would fail simultaneously. Systems of banking, energy, transportation, food production and delivery, water, emergency services and even cyberspace would collapse."

...Franks has introduced H.R. 3410, the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act, which would let Homeland Security take practical steps to protect the electric grid. This bill has been called a "necessary first step" in protecting the nation's power grid.


I'm not some kind of paranoid survivalist, but this possibility really bothers me. If all it takes is one nuclear warhead detonated perhaps 100 miles above the country to shut down modern electrical and motorized civilization for months, most of the country's population would die through starvation and lack of safe drinking water. Supermarkets only have an average of 3 days worth of food supplies on hand, relying on a stream of trucks and trains to supply cities with food. This is one threat that I think we should take seriously, because there are people out there who would do this if they could.

And OK, I'll admit to reading some works of fiction about EMP attack

[Regolyth]

I think stating "90% of America's population" would die is a bit extreme. Sure, I think it would inadvertently kill a lot of people through starvation, disease and in-fighting, but I don't think it's 90$ bad. Maybe more like 50%. Then again, I'm no expert and have nothing to back up my numbers. Also, eventually it would get restored. It would probably take a while; months a while. Perhaps I'm being a bit too optimistic about the situation.

I think I said this a couple of weeks ago in another article, but I was at one of the museums in D.C. not long ago (I can't remember if it was the Spy Museum or a different one) and they had this room you walked in to that talked about this happening. It spoke (yeah, the room literal spoke... seriously) about how easily America's power grid could be taken down with a few well placed explosives or an EMP. There's apparently only a few power grids across the U.S. (three or four I think), serving different parts of the country.

This is a subject I've thought about on more than one occasion. Not only is it easy to take out our power grid, the grid is also severely inefficient and overly complicated. It was built many years ago and has just been added to over the years as more power is needed. It should be rebuilt from the ground up, honestly. It also needs to be protected for scenarios as described.

[Morreion]

One direction we seem to be going is to have more and more complicated ways of living that are too fragile to cope if any disaster strikes. Looking back on past civilizations that have collapsed, this seems to have happened to them too- Joseph Tainter is an anthropologist that has written about this subject. Massive irrigation works that support a much larger population that runs into a years-long drought that breaks down that civilization, that sort of thing.

I remember reading about fairly small and safe nuclear power reactor capsules (a few feet tall) that could be used to power whole towns or neighborhoods in cities (pebble bed reactors, maybe?)- I think that decentralized power is the way we ought to be going. Having the whole population depend on a mega-grid is crazy, with everyone at risk if something goes really bad. Once solar power becomes efficient enough, that could be a big source as well- apparently that's going to take a while, though.

[Regolyth]

May 13, 2014 12:58:34 GMT -5 Morreion said:

I remember reading about fairly small and safe nuclear power reactor capsules (a few feet tall) that could be used to power whole towns or neighborhoods in cities (pebble bed reactors, maybe?)

I have never heard of that. That sounds really interesting, and really good. It seems viable. Although I suppose a lot of people might have problems with the possible leakage that could occur. I don't know what level of danger is associated with such small reactors though. Did they say anything about that?

May 13, 2014 12:58:34 GMT -5 Morreion said:

I think that decentralized power is the way we ought to be going. Having the whole population depend on a mega-grid is crazy, with everyone at risk if something goes really bad.

I agree with decentralizing the power. It seems like a no-brainer that it's a bad idea to have so many resources in a central location. Putting aside the possibility of a malacious attack, what about a natural disaster? A earthquake, tornado or Hurricane could come without warning and destroy thing far easier than a terroist could. But then, that's our government for you. They seem to like centralizing everything (the Federal government versus State). I suppose it makes it easier to control.

[Morreion]

Yeah, centralization and federal politicians seem to go hand in hand

Here's a 6-year-old article about small nuclear power plant vessels:

Mini Nuclear Power Plants Could Power 20,000 Homes (Update) (PhysOrg)

Underground nuclear power plants no bigger than a hot tub may soon provide electricity for communities around the world. Measuring about 1.5 meters across, the mini reactors can each power about 20,000 homes. (Please see below for an update)

The small energy modules were originally designed by Otis "Pete" Peterson and other scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. Now, the technology is being commercially developed by Hyperion Power Generation, which recently announced that it has taken its first orders and plans to start mass production within five years.

"Our goal is to generate electricity for 10 cents a watt anywhere in the world," said John Deal, CEO of Hyperion. "[The nuclear plants] will cost approximately $25 million each. For a community with 10,000 households, that is a very affordable $2,500 per home."

Because of their small size, the mini power plants can be assembled relatively quickly and transported by truck, rail or ship to remote locations, even places that currently do not have electricity. The power plants provide an alternative to current nuclear plants, which are large, expensive, and take about 10 years to build. Also, large-scale power plants don´t fit the needs of small populations or areas without available land. Hyperion´s modules can be connected together to provide energy for larger populations, as well.

In addition, the Hyperion modules have no moving parts to wear down, and never need to be opened on site. Even if opened, the small amount of enclosed fuel would immediately cool, alleviating safety concerns. "It is impossible for the module to go supercritical, ´melt down,´ or create any type of emergency situation," the company states on its Web site. Because the Hyperion plants would be buried underground and guarded by a security detail, the company explains that they´ll be out of sight and safe from illegitimate uses. Further, the material inside wouldn´t be appropriate for proliferation purposes.

"You would need nation-state resources in order to enrich our uranium," Deal said. "Temperature-wise it´s too hot to handle. It would be like stealing a barbecue with your bare hands."

The reactors need to be refueled about every seven to ten years. After five years of generating power, Hyperion says that the module produces a total waste of about the size of a softball, which could be a candidate for fuel recycling.


We need to think outside the box like this! Centralized everything is vulnerable!

Here's a more recent article:

Tiny power plants hold promise for nuclear energy (Yahoo News)

[Regolyth]

Why don't we have these things yet? They seem awesome and well worth the effort. The ones from the second article seem to be different than the first (bigger, more expensive and greater concern over how they're constructed).

Someone in one of the comments section had an excellent point: use these things for lunar bases. Now I'm sure they will be quite heavy, but one could probably be taken up on a shuttle, right? I'm not sure what the weight limit is on a rocket. They took all of the stuff up to make the Space Station, surely this weighs in the same category as parts and pieces of that. I wonder if something like this could be used to power a ship to Mars or something? Hmm...