Physics Commons^™

The International Trafficking In Arms Regulations: Precluding Innovation In Academic Spacecraft Engineering — Or Are They?, Jeremy Straub, Joe Vacek

Jeremy Straub

Government regulations and uncertainty about their enforcement can be a significant barrier to innovation. In business, it is undesirable to consume time and other resources developing a product that cannot be sold or which requires navigating significant bureaucracy for each sale. In academ-ia, where limited funding is available prior to the submission of a grant pro-posal and receipt of an award, proposal-stage compliance costs can derail a project long before it begins. This paper reviews the International Traffick-ing in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and their impact on spacecraft research in academia, private research labs and industry. It reviews the exemptions available, …

Emp And Geomagnetic Storm Protection Of Critical Infrastructure, George H. Baker Iii

George H Baker

EMP and solar storm wide geographic coverage and ubiquitous system effects beg the question of “Where to begin?” with protection efforts. Thus, in addressing these “wide area electromagnetic (EM) effects,” we must be clever in deciding where to invest limited resources. Based on simple risk analysis, the electric power and communication infrastructures emerge as the highest priority for EM protection. Programs focused on these highest risk infrastructures will go a long way in lessoning societal impact. Given the national scope of the effects, such programs must be coordinated at the national level but implemented at local level. Because wide-area EM …

Risk-Based Critical Infrastructure Priorities For Emp And Solar Storms, George H. Baker Iii

George H Baker

Two electromagnetic phenomena have the potential to create continental-scale disasters. The first, nuclear electromagnetic pulse (EMP), results from a nuclear detonation high above the tropopause. The second, a major solar storm, or "solar tsunami" occurs naturally when an intense wave of charged particles from the sun perturbs the earth's magnetic field. Both phenomena can debilitate electrical and electronic systems necessary for the operation of infrastructure systems and services. One reason why a U.S. protection program has yet to be initiated is that policy makers continue to wrestle with the question of where to begin, given the Department of Homeland Security’s …

Risk-Based Critical Infrastructure Protection Priorities For Emp And Solar Storms, George H. Baker Iii

George H Baker

The Commission to Assess the Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic Pulse Attack has provided a compelling case for protecting civilian infrastructure against the effects of EMP. As with protecting infrastructure against any hazard, it will be important to take a risk-based priority approach for EMP, recognizing that it is fiscally impracticable to protect everything. In this regard, EMP is particularly challenging in that it interferes with electrical and electronic data, control, transmission, and communication systems organic to nearly all infrastructures in a simultaneous and wide-scale manner. And, for nuclear burst altitudes of 100s of kilometers, the exposed geography …

Cascading Infrastructure Failures: Avoidance And Response, George H. Baker, Cheryl J. Elliott

George H Baker

No critical infrastructure is self-sufficient. The complexity inherent in the interdependent nature of infrastructure systems complicates planning and preparedness for system failures. Recent wide-scale disruption of infrastructure on the Gulf Coast due to weather, and in the Northeast due to electric power network failures, dramatically illustrate the problems associated with mitigating cascading effects and responding to cascading infrastructure failures once they have occurred.

The major challenge associated with preparedness for cascading failures is that they transcend system, corporate, and political boundaries and necessitate coordination among multiple, disparate experts and authorities. This symposium brought together concerned communities including government and industry …