MIL-STD-464: “Electromagnetic Environmental Effects Requirements for Systems”
MIL-STD-464 is an interesting beast, less well known than its counterpart MIL-STD-461. MIL-STD-464 is currently on Rev D and can be officially downloaded for free.
This document is concerned with making sure full systems (aircraft, tanks, etc.) are able to operate safely in regards to all the potential threats from the electromagnetic environment. Testing to MIL-STD-461 is part of making sure that a given component will integrate safely with the larger platform, ensuring electromagnetic compatibility. However, the broader MIL-STD-464 standard has many additional concerns: making sure aircraft are safe when hit by lightning; making sure space RF systems don’t suffer from multipaction; controlling intermodulation products from RF systems installed on naval vessels; making sure that personnel and ordnance isn’t affected by the excess charge picked up by aircraft in flight, and much more. It includes sections on lightning, EMP, RADHAZ, TEMPEST, ESD and several others. So while it is one of the primary sources of EMC requirements on defense and aerospace projects, it encompasses a much broader universe of E3 (electromagnetic environmental effects).
TIP:
As with MIL-STD-461, anyone who takes the extra time to read the appendices will be amply rewarded with context, lessons learned, and additional technical details.
TIP:
It was frustrating to me for a long time that MIL-STD-464 requires testing as verification for Multipaction (relevant to space RF systems), but did not give any hints or pointers to a test standard. AIAA-S-121 does include such a reference, to ECSS-E-20-01A, Space Engineering – Multipaction and Test, European Space Agency (ESA) for the European Cooperation for Space Standardization (ECSS), 5 May 2003.”