Detection and Search Radars
Search radars scan a wide area with pulses of short radio waves. They usually scan the area two to four times a minute. The waves are usually less than a meter long. Ships and planes are metal, and reflect radio waves. The radar measures the distance to the reflector by measuring the time from emission of a pulse to reception, and dividing by the speed of light. To be accepted, the received pulse has to lie within a period of time called the range gate. The radar determines the direction because the short radio waves behave like a search light when emitted from the reflector of the radar set's antenna.
Read more about this topic: Radar Configurations And Types
Famous quotes containing the word search:
“Let the maiden, with erect soul, walk serenely on her way, accept the hint of each new experience, search in turn all the objects that solicit her eye, that she may learn the power and charm of her new-born being, which is the kindling of a new dawn in the recesses of space.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)