A RUSSIAN EXPERIMENTAL HIGH-POWER, SHORT-PULSE RADAR

The detection of small, fast-moving targets travelling just above the sea surface poses particular difficulties for microwave radars. This p aper describes an experimental equipment designed and built by a conso rtium of Russian organizations, under contract to the United Kingdom, to collect data relevant to etch a task. The radar equipment is novel in that it provides high range resolution, and adequate energy for det ection, by means of a short-duration pulse (5ns) of high peak power (5 00 MW). Operating at a pulse repetition frequency of 150Hz, clutter re turns are suppressed by subtracting the returns from adjacent pulses, although a variety of signal processing algorithms are available to be applied to the signal. The system which is operated and maintained by GEC-Marconi Research Centre staff, has a comprehensive data recording and display system, and is currently deployed at a UK coastal test si te to gather data on clutter and tal gets fat-further analysis. The ra dar has so far-emitted over 40 million pulses with powers in excess of 300MW, and has demonstrated excellent reliability. The Russian consor tium is currently investigating possible enhancements to the radar.