Is the aimpoints electronics guarded against EMP?

doubtful but how often has someone EMPed you?

If a nuke went off within a distance that left me alive I was wondering if the Aimpoint would be damaged by the EMP.  I figure the ACOG or reflex would get a little recharge to the tritium if anything.

That's why you have BUISs [;)]

Would a piece of paper stop a .22?

Air bursts (No fireball touching the ground) produce more EMP than a surface or subsurface det.  There is NO WAY an aimpoint is shielded against an significant EMP.  (If you are close enough to see the airburst fireball)   The batt's will probably exude like a puppy dog on a pants leg too.  If you survive, your aimpoint working is the LEAST of your worries pal!  Course, that also means the AW ban is null & void too!  Woo-HOO!

Don't use the "Broken Arrow" movie as an example.  If the EMP is strong enough to knock a helo down then your digital watch and the HMMWV ain't gonna work either!

If I survived a nuclear blast that was very close by, my red dot sight would be the last thing I would worry about.

Now, if you found yourself in a dome where two men enter and one man must leave, then weapons would be something I would worry about. [chainsawkill]

SPORK - Good Idea for the feedback area in EE:  

BUST A DEAL - FACE THE WHEEL!!!


Welcome to Thunderdome!

I would assume so, most military hardware is spec'd to be nuke hardened, and it is a simple matter of adding a few small components to protect certain sensitive electronics from a very short duration (low energy) high voltage spike.  The battery itself might be sufficient to do the job since the scope is basically a metal tube and doesn't have any long wires going to / from it.

That’s why I was wondering.  The sight has been dropped, baked, frozen, submerged, stir fried, molested by horny gorillas, etc...
I figured the one thing they would consider is the EMP burst.  I remember the training we did for NBC including how to survive a nuke detonation.  There must have been a consideration for the soldiers who survive it and have Aimpoints. The thing that protects electronics against EMP is just beefed up insulation.  I guess I could e-mail the company and ask.  

  Fella's, I sure ain't trying to urinate in your 'corn-flakes', but it takes a HELLUVA lot more than mere "metal" surrounding something to shield it from EMP!  

"Short duration" WTF!?  A significant EMP involves a time frame of over a minute and a half!

"Low energy and High voltage?"  WTF!?    We are talking "14,000 AMPS" with EMP and a mere "6 million VOLTS"!

  For TRUE shielding from EMP you must have a "SHUNT TO GROUND" and depending on the sensitivity of the electronics (if it has a chip, it's sensitive!) it may even need a load dump to bleed off the excess energy.  

 Again, if the balloon goes up, your Aimpont working is the least of your worries!

How do I know this:
Military Intel electronics repair from 93-96
Explosive Ordnance Disposal from 96-pres.

I also did some work with Project TEMPEST.  Do a google search and you can read more about all of this. (http://www.apogeonline.com/libri/00483/allegati/doc/tempest/EMP08.HTM)

It's kinda weenie-ish techno babble about how to shield electronics, but, it will give you a good idea of how bad assed an EMP is.  That could explain why it's referred to as the "SHIT HITS THE FAN" (SHTF) it won't be pretty & it'll cause a big stinkin mess.

Aimpoint red dot is just some variable resistors and red LED. LED's are III-V compounded semiconductors which is radiation harden by design. There is no dioxide barrier to breakdown like CMOS transistor and the hole-pair generated due to the intense radiation will not damage the device itself. You, on the other hand, will be a different story. This is the funniest thread I've ever seen in this board. [ROFL2]

I thought of a couple of replies:

1.  If you are that close [b]YOU'RE NOW THE RED DOT![/b]

2.  Assuming your eyes survive, you'll see a red dot...whether you've got an aimpoint or not!

3.  On the other hand, if you've watched Matrix a time or two too many, maybe you're really worried about frying your sight after the Nebuchanezzer sets off an EMP burst to fry the Matrix's hunter killer bots.

Boom_Stick, if you are seriously concerned about a nuke and all it's effects on your sight, maybe you should sell it and get a Trijicon.  The TA-31's appear to be more available and you could get a good used price for your Aimpoint.  There is NOT A THING electronic in a TA-31 and therefore should survive.

 In all honesty, I do not know for 'certain' the answer to your question.  There are alot of unexplained happenings with electronics, that is why it is still 'Theory' and not all law.

 I would also like to apologize if I 'ticked off' anybody with my responses, as I shouldn't state "WTF!?".  That is pretty harsh given that I don't know you as a person and cannot gauge your response, even if I intend it in a friendly manner.  That was not a polite response for me, as I really am not that sort of fellow.  Nobody has talked or IMed me regarding this, I just re-read this thread and thought someone may think "ill" of what I had posted.

This is pretty funny stuff though.  My final post on this thread is the lamest, but the truest:  "Then again, I could be wrong..."  [beer] Cheers!

{Edited to add emoticon and "cheers"}  

An enemy could use very high attitude nuclear detonations to cause a nation wide destruction of electronics. You may not necessary be physically harmed by such an event. Also, your electronics could be fried by an EMP without being in any physical danger from the blast effects. For example, the blast on Bikini Atoll fried radios on the Hawawiian Islands.

 

This is the scenario I meant to refer to as an example.  There are military tactical plans to knock out enemy electronics that involve high altitude nuke bursts. Our military relies HEAVILY on electronics now, even down to the basic infantrymen’s rifle sight, the Aimpoint. I figured with all the attention they give to nuke hardening their electronics (radar, radio, satellites, etc..), that they would have to consider the survivability of the infantryman’s rifle sight.




It's OK William, I have a fairly thick skin so no harm done! [:D]  Thanks for addressing it though.

BOOM, Aha!  Now I understand what you are referring to!  The NUKE-LESS EMP.  Those weapons ARE short duration (>1 sec) EMP generators, but real high on AMPS.  There is a 'rumor' that they are variable altitude initiated, meaning HIGH alt. for wide footprint, or low alt. for small footprint.  There actually was an article about the development of these weapons in AUG-SEP-OCT 2001 timeframe (of Popular Science or Pop. Mechanics).  They aren't like "Oceans 11" as there is a conventional explosive charge induced pressure wave that "squeezes" a pulse wave out of a supercharged coil or capacitor bank.  They were developed in 1945-46!  Nice off the shelf technology!

 Without getting into any classified realms, I "believe" a 'STRIKEWARN' would go out to units within this weapons effective radius with a safety fan.  As this would be a THEATER LEVEL decision to employ this system.  But, then again, we neglected to notify the coalition forces when we used the "Hamburger" AKA "Daisy Cutter" bomb in GW1.  

{Edited to add (of Popular Science or Pop. Mechanics)}