What are electromagnetic weapons and do they threaten Ukraine? The Flash explains

What is an electromagnetic weapon?

This term can encompass many different devices based on their operating principle, but in his opinion, only the concept of directional microwave radiation seems realistic.

This radiation creates induced currents in electronic components, damaging them or disrupting their operation.

Backpack from the Russian Federation

«In the entire history of military equipment, only one serial complex of electromagnetic weapons of the Russian Federation, the Ranets-E, was created, which turned out to be… useless to anyone in the world, since it moved on a rocket tractor and fired an impulse as often as once every 20 minutes,» notes Beskrestnov.

The radiation in «Ranka» is generated in the centimeter range with a pulse duration of 10 nanoseconds and is focused by a parabolic antenna. That is, the generators charge the capacitors for 20 minutes to obtain a discharge of the required power.

The authors announced a range of 10 km for shooting down drones with a beam.

What else is there in the world?

«The Flash» cites examples of at least six weapons of this type.

1. Raytheon Co. Missile Systems has been developing the Phaser combat EMI generator since 2019, but the stage of development is unknown. The characteristics are also unknown.
2. In 2019, the United States created another electromagnetic weapon system, THOR. The system is housed in a sea container and has a direct focus antenna as a radiating element. Exact characteristics are unknown.
3. The British have been working on the RF DEW system since 2010, about which nothing is known either.
4. In China, there is a low-power system ZC-100 from EM Sniper, the product weighs one ton, the range is 0.5-1 kilometer. The antenna is 1.5 meters in diameter, the pulse power is 10 kW.
5. Another Chinese electromagnetic weapon system was created by CSGC and NORINCO, but apart from the drawing, nothing is known about its characteristics.
6. And of course, the most publicized project is the Epirus company with the Leonidas system. «But if you try to find any specifics about this product, you won’t find anything. The entire Internet is filled with beautiful pictures, videos, cartoons and 3D graphics about this system without technical data and specifics. There is also a lot of information on the Internet about attracting finance to this project. Even a photo of the development team gives strange impressions that make you think of some kind of inflated startup, not a military project,» Beskrestnov assesses the development.

Is there a threat?

According to Serhiy, electromagnetic weapons are certainly a promising direction. However, he notes that one should not expect a long range and power, but the weapon is excellent for protection against UAVs.

«The size is large, and the product is energy-intensive. It is clearly not relevant on our fronts. They will find it and destroy it,» he says.

Nothing mass-produced, practical, and affordable is being produced in the world, despite decades of development, the expert adds. Moreover, he notes, there is no reliable information about the characteristics and capabilities of global developments.

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