In 1904, Japanese destroyers launched a surprise attack on a Russian fleet anchored at a naval base in Manchuria, sparking the Russo-Japanese War. To zero in on their targets, Japanese commanders relied on radio communications, a technology still in its infancy at the time.
However, by cobbling together radio equipment from a battleship and a coastal radio station, the Russians were able to jam the Japanese communications and cause as many as 60 artillery shells to miss their targets. This ingenious tactic is one of the first instances of military personnel engaging in what is now known as electromagnetic warfare.
Over a hundred years later, electromagnetic tactics have become much more advanced and potentially much more devastating. Learning how to conduct and protect against these invisible operations is a top priority in every corner of the intelligence community.
Electromagnetic Warfare Defined
Electromagnetic warfare, also referred to as electronic warfare, is the use of the electromagnetic spectrum to either directly attack an enemy or disrupt their operations. The manipulation of electromagnetic waves can also be used for defensive and support purposes.
The electromagnetic spectrum is made up of different types of electromagnetic radiation, each of which is defined by its own frequency and wavelength. The spectrum, from lowest to highest frequency and energy, includes:
- Radio waves
- Microwaves
- Infrared
- Ultraviolet
- X-rays
- Gamma waves
All of these forms of radiation are naturally occurring in the Earth's atmosphere. They can be seen, harnessed, generated and/or manipulated using specialized technology. While they have military applications, these types of radiation are also used in telecommunications, medicine and various other sectors.
Uses of Electromagnetic Warfare
Electromagnetic energy can be used by military personnel to attack, defend or support, and a U.S. Air Force publication on electromagnetic spectrum operations identifies specific types of electromagnetic spectrum strategies. These strategies are not only employed by the Air Force in battle, but by security agencies and other branches of the military during initiatives of all kinds.
Detection
All forms of electromagnetic radiation can be used for detection purposes. However, while some forms of radiation are stronger than others, one isn't necessarily better than another. Each has their own unique applications.
Military, intelligence and homeland security personnel can use:
- Radio waves and microwaves to power radar systems
- Infrared waves to detect heat signatures in low-light environments
- Ultraviolet waves to detect biological and chemical agents
- X-rays to see within objects and to use in medical applications
- Gamma waves to detect explosives and nuclear materials
Utilizing the appropriate detection technology allows for the efficient gathering of intelligence. This is true for use in both international conflicts and to disrupt domestic threats.
Exploitation
If an adversary is using equipment that utilizes electromagnetic energy in any form, that energy can be identified, analyzed and exploited to gain an upper hand. In many cases, electromagnetic energy created by an adversary can be used to gain information.
For example, military intelligence analysts can either listen in on conversations or analyze radio waves to determine what equipment is being used and where.
Deceit
Because military technology often relies on electromagnetic signals and personnel often make tactical decisions based on those signals, false signals can be effective in deceiving adversaries. This tactic is especially prevalent with aircraft that often deploy decoys to divert surface-to-air missiles.
Disruption
Like deceptive tactics, disruptive electromagnetic strategies can confuse an adversary's strategy-making process. A prime example is the use of signal jammers. Signal jammers are devices that introduce either loud sounds or concentrated radio signals that interrupt communications.
Destruction
Highly concentrated electromagnetic signals can partially or entirely destroy an adversary's equipment and, in some cases, incapacitate its personnel. For instance, military personnel can deploy powerful bursts of energy called electromagnetic pulses (EMPs) to destroy and damage an adversary's equipment over a large targeted area.
How Intelligence Is Used to Combat Electromagnetic Warfare
The ways that electromagnetic waves are used in offensive operations make up only one half of all electromagnetic warfare tactics. The other half involve protecting one's own personnel, equipment and infrastructure against attacks. While all types of intelligence operations play a key role in devising defensive strategies, signals intelligence (SIGINT) is especially useful in this context.
What Is SIGINT, and How Is It Gathered?
Signals intelligence refers to information gathered from signals exchanged via electronic communication systems. This can involve two parties communicating via phone, radio or computer or machines transmitting information across a network.
By analyzing electronic communication signals, intelligence operatives aim to determine:
- What information is being communicated
- Who or what is communicating
- Where those machines or people are located
- The size of a communication network
Signals can be intercepted using handheld devices, satellites, listening stations, or planes and other vehicles outfitted with specialized equipment. In many cases, electromagnetic communications are encrypted and must be deciphered.
Using SIGINT to Protect Against Electromagnetic Attacks
Once operatives have gained sufficient knowledge about potential electromagnetic threats and vulnerabilities, they can prepare defense strategies and countermeasures. These measures can also be used to protect personnel and equipment from the effects of one's own operations.
Common electromagnetic defenses include:
- Shielding: Covering of sensitive hardware with materials that minimize interference, particularly radio interference
- Hardening: Engineering and redesigning equipment to make it less vulnerable to EMPs, radiation and other threats
- Frequency agility: Shifting operating frequencies to avoid disruptions and surveillance
- Low observable technologies: Using technologies that camouflage objects such as planes from radar and other devices that utilize the electromagnetic spectrum
While SIGINT is often used to inform electromagnetic defense strategies, it can also be used to prepare defenses against attacks of all kinds and perform general recognizance.
Become the Kind of Informed Intelligence Professional the Country Needs
Today, artificial intelligence, drones and other relatively new technologies are reshaping the face of global conflict and national security. The nation's military and intelligence agencies will need to conduct ongoing research to create both ethical policies and effective defenses. The Master of Arts in Intelligence and Security Studies program at Augusta University Online prepares students to do just that.
In this flexible yet rigorous program, future and current intelligence professionals alike learn about different types of intelligence, data analytics, research design and other topics that shape modern intelligence and security policy and tactics. Students can choose from two concentrations -- Technical Intelligence Analysis or Social Influence -- or a synchronous General option that allows them to choose electives to customize their degree.
To find out how AU Online can help you take the next step in your career, request more information today.
Recommended Readings
3 Homeland Security Careers
How to Become a Counterintelligence Officer
Interstate vs. Intrastate Conflicts: What Intelligence Professionals Need to Know
Sources:
Congressional Research Service, "Defense Primer: Military Use of the Electromagnetic Spectrum"
Department of Homeland Security, Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP)/Geomagnetic Disturbance (GMD)
Irregular Warfare Initiative, "Russian Electronic Warfare: From History to Modern Battlefield"
National Aeronautics and Space Administration, "Introduction to the Electromagnetic Spectrum"
North Atlantic Treaty Organization, "Electromagnetic Warfare"
United States Air Force, "Electromagnetic Spectrum Operations"