Compact Spectral Discrimination Sensor Capable of Simultaneous Laser and Missile Warning with Wide Direction of Arrival

Missile warning device is a crucial integral part in missile defense systems in providing early warning of missile launches with low false-alarm rates from cluttered sunlight background. Existing infrared and ultra-violet based missile warning products are either expensive in system cost or lack of sensitivity for long-range ballistic missile detection. It is preferred to develop innovative missile warning device with improvements in performance to cost ratio over existing products. New Span Opto-Technology Inc. proposes herein a novel compact spectral discrimination sensor that is capable of discriminating ballistic missile propulsion plume from cluttered sunlight background and is also capable of laser warning through coherent discrimination of laser beam with non-coherent light sources. The combination of missile warning and laser warning in a single compact system is a significant innovation of the proposed project. The sensor offers excellent background noise rejection, wide direction-of-arrival determination, and the capability of missile spectral evaluation using the same imaging sensor array. Phase I will design and construct a proof-of-concept spectral discrimination sensor and demonstrate its operation. The performance of the compact spectral discrimination sensor will be optimized in Phase II to yield a practical device system ready to support military and commercial applications.