The IEEE established two military exposure environments (i.e. restricted and unrestricted) that can be further divided into three zones. Zone 0 applies to unrestricted environments and Zone 1 and Zone 2 apply to restricted environments.3 Appendix A shows IEEE safety exposure limits for Zone 0 and Zone 1.3  Aboard Navy ships, for example, high-power RF-EMF emitters (e.g., antennas below 100 MHz) can induce current through human body when in close proximity.7  The US Navy defined almost all topside of a ship as restricted “controlled” areas whereas RF-EMF radiation risk mitigation, protection, and management are essential for military operations.

Examples of military RF-EMF emitting sources are listed below based on application categories:8

Historically, RF-EMF overexposures were less common in military environments and most reported cases were below exposure limits (see Clinical Scenarios below).9,10  Over the nine-year period from 2014 to 2022, the U.S. Air Force reported and investigated 126 suspected cases among 38,000 personnel who routinely worked closely with high-power RF-EMF emitters.10  Only one patient had EMF-related injury confirmed by these investigations.10