HAVANA SYNDROME
- May 24, 2021
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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HAVANA SYNDROME
Subject: Science & technology
Context: The Biden administration is facing new pressure to resolve a mystery that has vexed its predecessors: Is an adversary using a microwave or radio wave weapon to attack the brains of US diplomats, spies and military personnel?
Concept:
Havana Syndrome:
- In late 2016, USA diplomats and other employees stationed in Havana (capital of Cuba) reported feeling ill after hearing strange sounds and experiencing odd physical sensations.
- The symptoms included nausea, severe headaches, fatigue, dizziness, sleep problems, and hearing loss, which have since come to be known as the Havana Syndrome.
- The more chronic problems suffered by Havana personnel included mainly vestibular processing and cognitive problems as well as insomnia and headache.
- While the symptoms have resolved for some of the affected employees, for others, the effects have lingered and posed a significant obstacle to their work and affected the normal functioning of lives.
Microwave Weapons
- These are supposed to be a type of direct energy weapons, which aim highly focused energy in the form of sonic, laser, or microwaves, at a target.
- The high-frequency electromagnetic radiations heat the water in the human body and cause discomfort and pain. It works the same way as the kitchen appliance.
- In a microwave oven, an electron tube called a magnetron produces electromagnetic waves (microwaves) that bounce around the metal interior of the appliance, and are absorbed by the food.
- The microwaves agitate the water molecules in the food, and their vibration produces heat that cooks the food. Foods with a high water content cook faster in a microwave often than drier foods.
Countries with Microwave Weapons:
- A number of countries are thought to have developed these weapons to target both humans and electronic systems.
- China had first put on display its microwave weapon, called Poly WB-1, at an air show in 2014.
- The USA has also developed a prototype microwave-style weapon, which it calls the “Active Denial System”, which is the first non-lethal, directed-energy, counter-personnel system with an extended range greater than currently fielded non-lethal weapons.