Performance bounds for hot and cold clutter mitigation

A new method is presented for describing the theoretical interference space -time covariance matrix that will be observed in an adaptive airborne radar system under specific topographical conditions. Both hot clutter that is i nduced by interfering sources and cold clutter that results from the radar transmitter are considered. This method incorporates phenomenology observed under site-specific conditions as well as system effects such as array geo metry, receiver filtering, and system bandwidth. Use of this formulation ra ther than sample data analyses that are generally employed enables one to i nfer performance bounds for site-specific, and thus generally, heterogeneou s terrain that are tighter and therefore more meaningful than the thermal n oise floor limit.