Starfish Prime

August 14, 2009
Conducted in 1962, project Starfish Prime may be the single most famous nuclear test shot in electromagnetic pulse (EMP) lore. Even though the EMP was detonated at high altitude, street lights were burned out in Hawaii, 800 miles from the test site. Fortunately, the electrical and electronic systems of the day were relatively resistant to EMP, so damage was limited. Today, an electromagnetic pulse attack would knock out the computerized fuel management and ignition systems of modern gasoline-engine vehicles. Older diesel engines, on the other hand, do not use electronic ignition. Older Jeeps can easily be converted over to points and condenser, and-bingo!-also have no electronic ignition. As a precaution against EMP, both types of vehicles make sense.