2.

Radar Basics - 1

What is Radar?
!
Transmission and reception of Electro-Magnetic
radiation via echo location."
Collimated into a beam and scanned"
Usually pulsed and many pulses per second"
Detects objects and their location."

Why Radar?
!
Radar is able to operate day or night"
Radar is able to operate in all weathers"
Radar has very broad coverage"
Detects and tracks moving objects"
High resolution Imaging"
Object recognition"

Weather Radar

Weather Radar Katrina 2005

Weather Radar Sandy 2012

Terra SAR-X Image of

Sydney, Australia

The Future

Vehicular Radar

Vehicular Radar

Vehicular Radar

Vehicular Radar

Radar
Detects and tracks objects of interest"
Measures the location of objects remotely in range
and angle"
Generates imagery of the ground (and other
objects)"
Able to provide very wide coverage (e.g. 3600,
global)"
Operates day and night and in all weathers"
Can provide information about object type and
intent"

Schematic Diagram of a
Simple Radar System

Im Listening

Wavelength and Frequency

c= f

Phase

Intensity of spherical waves

Polarization

The electric-field of a wave travelling in the Z direction is in the x-y plane as defined by
Ex and Ey ."
"
If Ex = 0, or Ey = 0 then the polarization is linear. "
"
If Ex= Ey and they oscillate in phase, the field will oscillate linearly along a 450 line in
the x-y plane."
"
If Ex= Ey and are a multiple of pi/2 put of phase the polarization is circular and if Ex is
not equal to E the polarization is elliptical."

Diffraction

Beams

Refraction and Reflection

Primary Air Traffic Control Radar

at Heathrow Airport , London, UK

Air Traffic Control Radar (ACTR) ALE 3X5

Maccarese, Italy

A. Farina, June 2003

Courtesy of AMS

Civil Marine Radar

Civil marine band radar used "
by shipping throughout the world. "
All commercial craft are legally
obliged to carry such radar
systems"

Martello UK Air Long Range Defence

Radar System

US E3-D Sentry Airborne Early Warning

Radar System

Captor Radar for TYPHOON Aircraft

Airborne Intercept Radar

Courtesy of BAE SYSTEMS"

BYSON UK Experimental Radar

AEGIS AN-SPY1 Air Defence

MESAR-1 Experimental Phased Array

Naval Air Defence

Early Bistatic Radar Experiments

at UCL

Griffiths, H.D. and Carter, S.M., Provision of moving target indication in an independent bistatic
radar receiver; The Radio and Electronic Engineer, Vol.54, No.7/8, pp336-342, July/August 1984 ."

94 GHz SAR Experimental System

sometimes used in Missile Seekers