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INTRODUCTION TO ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM OPERATIONS
Last Updated: 30 July 2019
The Air Force operates throughout the range of military operations (ROMO) in the
warfighting domains of air, space, and cyberspace. Control of air, space, and
cyberspace provides the joint force with freedom of action while reducing vulnerability to
enemy attacks from those domains. The electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) transcends
all physical domains, and in order for the joint force to gain and maintain control in all
domains, a degree of superiority in the EMS is required to conduct operations against
peer- and near-peer adversaries in contested environments. Modern warfare is highly
dependent on the EMS and maintaining an advantage within this discipline is necessary
to enable joint force commanders (JFCs) to gain tactical, operational, and strategic
advantage. Our platforms, weapon systems, and kill chains rely on the EMS – a reliance
increasingly challenged by competitors and adversaries. For this reason, a
comprehensive understanding of the EMS and operations within it is critical to gaining
and maintaining the desired degree of control in the EMS.
INTRODUCTION
The EMS is a physical domain that exists regardless of human interaction and has
physical and temporal properties, similar to the warfighting domains, which we
interact with and influence. EMS-enabled capabilities are essential elements of
military operations—critical enablers of multi-domain synergy. The EMS is organized
by frequency and defines the types and categories of electromagnetic (EM) energy
existing within the universe. The EMS is the range of frequencies of EM radiation
from zero to infinity. It consists of oscillating electric and magnetic fields
characterized by frequency and wavelength. The EMS is usually subdivided into
frequency bands (typically 26 alphabetically designated bands) based on certain
physical characteristics, including radio waves, microwaves, millimeter waves,
infrared (IR) radiation, visible light, ultraviolet radiation, x-rays, and gamma rays. This
includes all EM radiation, manmade and naturally occurring, that exists from below
the earth’s surface (e.g., extremely low frequency radio to communicate with
submarines) continuing deep into space (e.g., X-band communications with deep
space probes), that can affect the movement, maneuver, employment and operation
of joint forces.
Electromagnetic spectrum operations (EMSO) comprise all coordinated military
ANNEX 3-51 ELECTROMAGNETIC WARFARE AND
ELECTROMAGNETIC SPECTRUM OPERATIONS
