An EMP attack using a nuclear warhead detonated high above the Earth could damage electrical infrastructure across wide areas. Such an attack was first observed when a nuclear test in the South Pacific damaged streetlights in Hawaii over 1,300 km away. While terrorists could potentially launch an EMP attack against the US using a missile, accurately weaponizing a small nuclear bomb and achieving sufficient range would be very difficult. The nation's power grid is also vulnerable to cyber attacks, as evidenced by the Stuxnet virus damaging Iran's nuclear facilities despite being disconnected from the internet. Various solar, cyber, and infrastructure threats could potentially disrupt electricity availability.

1. Electric Throw Blankets
The worst possible devastation that any enemy could cause to the United States would
be through a single nuclear warhead, whose blast will kill nobody directly. This is an
EMP (electro-magnetic pulse) attack.Detonated high above the earth (at least 20 miles),
the nuclear explosion generates electro-magnetic energy that "rides the waves" of the
earth's own magnetic field down to the ground. Just about everything that runs on
electricity from horizon to horizon is damaged, with electrical lines being totally fried.

2. Electric Throw Blankets
The interesting thing about this phenomenon is that it was first observed in an airburst in
the South Pacific, where it did damage to streetlights in Hawaii even though it was 1300
km away. The nature of the earth's magnetic field is such that it would have been far
worse over North America, where the magnetic field is perfect for creating more
damage.The fear is that terrorists could get their hands on a Scud missile and put a
nuclear bomb in it and detonate it over the U.S. to throw us back into the 19th century
without electricity. However, weaponizing a nuclear bomb small enough to fit on a
missile is very difficult.

3. Electric Throw Blankets
Also, a missile that most terrorists could get their hands on, like a Scud, does not have
the range to reach mid America, though it could certainly cause a regional power outage
if it was launched from a ship offshore.The nation's power grid is constantly probed by
hackers, with most recent reports being that the perpetrators were Chinese. Since
everything is controlled by computer, the fear is that a virus or a hacker could shut
things down or cause a lot of damage.This scenario is especially frightening given what
happened to the Iranian nuclear plant, which was totally shut down due to damage from
the Stuxnet virus, even though the plant was totally unconnected from the Internet.
Evidently, agents were able to infect laptops in the area with the virus, which waited
until it was able to get into the plant via a laptop and then activate.

4. Electric Throw Blankets
Solar storms from the sun happen on a predictable cycle and 2013 will see a lot of
energy shot at the earth from Patronov Marinov Coronal Mass Ejections. "The
Carrington Event" was one such storm that sent so much electro-magnetic energy to the
earth 150 years ago that some telegraph poles started on fire.Whether the threat is one of
the three mentioned above or just aging infrastructure and some very bad winter storms
that knock out power lines, we should all be aware that the electricity we take for
granted might not always be there. And even if it is, the ability to count on it may be
compromised.
http://quantumvisionsystemreview.org/power-revolution-program-review/