Putin , can do far more damage by exploding a nuke in the atmosphere than on land , causing a electromagnetic pulse . shutting down the internet and communication .
In theory
Since there's never been one, we don't
know exactly what it'll do.
The way it's always been explained to me,
Anything that could act as a conductive
antenna will absorb EMP and fry immediately.
That's all the electrical and phone and cable
television/computer lines, all the wiring in
your house, all the transformers on the
utility poles, all of your vehicles wiring, all
the switches and relays in your vehicle,
your kitchen appliances, washing machine
and dryer, your HVAC and systems, etc. etc.
etc. etc. etc. etc. so on so on
Supposedly strong enough to turn any of
the popular faraday cage things that people
put together into a glowing mass not
unlike an electric kiln
I don't know for sure. Nobody really does.
One theory that you don't hear much about
( because it scares so many) is the atmosphere
catching afire and making a crispy planet
of the earth after an atmospheric nuclear
blast