OT: EMP and Equipment

Allison> The term EMP is ElectroMagnetic Pulse refers to any large Allison> magnetic pulse. It is not exclusive to a nuke going off Allison> though that can generate a whale of a big one. Though Allison> dumping a sufficiently large (say 100KW/S) stored charge Allison> into a coil can really mess up local equipment. That's not how PolyPhaser (a major player in the professional lightning/EMP protection business) uses the terminology. Lightning and (nuclear) EMP have rather different waveforms (EMP has faster risetime). So protectors designed to protect from lightning aren't necessarily helpful for EMP. (However, EMP protectors also do fine for lightning.) Calling a lightning strike "EMP" is certainly a confusing use of the term. paul