EMP & Lightning Surge Protection for HF Radios

When many of us hear EMP, or electromagnetic pulse, we think of one effect of a high-altitude nuclear explosion. But there is a much more common, and therefore more hazardous, source of EMP … nearby lightning. NS5K walks us through best practices for protection in this first part of a two-part article.

This article explains some grounding practices, techniques and measurements, including recommended station configurations for electro-magnetic pulse (EMP) protection and safety. This is a follow-up to my previous CQ magazine article¹ which described how gas discharge tubes (GDTs) inside HF radio antenna surge protection devices (SPDs) operate and how using SPDs in the antenna cables can reduce the damage from an EMP. EMP surges can be generated in antennas from nearby lightning strikes. Because the GDTs inside SPDs wear out with use, routinely replacing the SPDs (or their GDTs) is required to maintain the initial level of protection. Not replacing an antenna SPD (or the GDT inside) after a nearby lightning storm is a poor practice.

The antenna and tuner in and , respectively, suffered obvious lightning-induced damage. But the person at that station said he didn’t replace the SPD because it “still looks good,” even though a bad SPD can look perfect from the outside and some SPDs are sealed. Even those SPDs with replaceable GDTs can appear to be fine because both good and bad GDTs can look the same. Many GDTs have opaque ceramic bodies, so