JAPAN

Threat of North Korean EMP attack leaves Japan vulnerable

Pyongyang claims ability to trigger high-altitude electromagnetic pulse

By Reiji Yoshida
Staff Writer

Sep 8, 2017

The North Korean nuclear crisis has fueled global concern over how much time is left before Pyongyang masters the technology required to miniaturize nuclear warheads and make the re-entry vehicles needed to deliver them on target.

But a Sept. 3 announcement by the reclusive state raised fears of another kind of attack that completely bypasses those hurdles: an electromagnetic pulse.

In Sunday's announcement, Pyongyang claimed to have successfully tested a hydrogen bomb and said it had the ability to detonate one at high altitude to generate an EMP — an electromagnetic wave that would fry electronic devices and disrupt communications for hundreds of kilometers around.

Threat of North Korean EMP attack leaves Japan vulnerable

Pyongyang claims ability to trigger high-altitude electromagnetic pulse

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