Palantir: A Cruise Missile Detection System

The Palantir concept is a highly effective and flexible camera network that can be integrated into current cruise missile defense systems. Current radar-based detection systems cannot detect cruise missiles at low altitudes. To address this shortcoming, the Palantir is a system of polarization cameras that detect, locate, and track incoming cruise missiles with high fidelity at low altitudes. Polaris Sensor Technologies’ Pyxis LWIR cameras developed for ARL detect low-flying cruise missiles. Polaris’ novel particle filter tracking algorithm developed for MDA/SMDC will provides a reliable track on incoming targets. Communication among these cameras provides location and heading information for nearby systems. These elements make the Palantir a useful tool in the detection and destruction of incoming cruise missile systems.