Modular Software Architecture for Advanced Weather Radars

This Phase I SBIR proposal describes the development of software tools to add a meteorological display mode to tactical radar systems. In a previous effort, our company modified an existing AN/MPQ-64 air defense radar to operate in a rapid scanning weather sensing mode. The modified radar, termed the MWR-05-XP, provides basic measurements of reflectivity and pulse-pair derived velocity from a truck-based mobile platform. In a separate effort, Lockheed Martin developed a Tactical Environmental Processor (TEP) to add an environmental display mode to the SPY-1 radar, which runs simultaneously with SPY-1’s normal hard target operating mode. In this project, we will develop modular software tools to combine Lockheed’s existing TEP software with the PC-based data system developed by ProSensing for the MWR-05-XP. In addition, we will work with Lockheed Martin to add new processing modules and display features to the TEP software package suitable for land-mobile operation. Standard scientific output data formats, such as NetCDF, will also be implemented to provide output to Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models. Phase I will include a demonstration of the processing of data from the MWR-05-XP by TEP using the radar’s PC-based data system.BENEFITS: Successful completion of Phase II will result in the development of the software necessary to transfer Lockheed Martin’s Tactical Environmental Processor, originally developed for the ship-based SPY-1 radar, to other rapid-scanning military radar systems. The Modular Software Architecture (MSA) envisioned for this effort will allow the addition of application-specific processing and display modules applicable to a variety of radar systems.