Radar Cross Section Measurements

The ability to image turntable targets through the principle of SAR/ISAR processing depends on accurate knowledge of the target motion and equipment that is stable. For full-scale targets at an outdoor facility, the motion may not be known to the degree needed to make the best images, and the equipment being used may not support the stability requirements. A signal processing technology is offered to solve both of these problems. This technology, which was developed for aircraft identification via radar, is capable of accurately measuring the motion of individual scatterers on the target, so that the motion can be properly compensated prior to the formation of images. Any motion can be compensated, such as buffeting of the target by the wind or irregular motion of the turntable, as well as apparent motions caused by errors in the measurement of turntable angle. This technology is also capable of recognizing which responses in the image are spurious, and where the backscattering originated for the spurious responses. It should be a valuable tool to customers of the RATSCAT facility.