REFRACTION-INDUCED TRACKING ERRORS AND CORRECTION METHODS FOR THE AIR FORCE WESTERN TEST RANGE

Abstract

The effect of refraction on radar and ballistic camera tracking accuracy is presented against a background of operational requirements and limitations. A method to compute refraction-induced errors using closed form expressions is presented together with a comparison of these errors against ray tracing results. For a hypothetical missile trajectory it is shown that the closed form solutions using an exponential model atmosphere are in good agreement with the ray tracing results using radiosonde data. The analysis also shows that the closed form expressions can be used to correct ballistic camera tracking errors. In this case a modified form of the exponential model is used to describe the optical refraction profile. Variations in refractivity in time and space are examined for their effect on tracking accuracy.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1968
Accession Number
AD0682998

Entities

People

  • J. R. Herlihy
  • L. G. Rowlandson

Organizations

  • SRC Inc.

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • C4I
  • Sensors
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Air Force
  • Aircrafts
  • Altimeters
  • Altitude
  • Ballistic Cameras
  • Cameras
  • Electromagnetic Wave Propagation
  • Equations
  • Geometry
  • Instrumentation
  • Measurement
  • Multipath Transmission
  • Ray Tracing
  • Recording Systems
  • Refractive Index
  • Telemetry Equipment

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Calculus or Mathematical Analysis
  • Sensor Fusion and Tracking Systems.
  • Wave Propagation and Nonlinear Chaotic Dynamics.

Technology Areas

  • Space
  • Space - Space Objects