Infrared Transmission and Path Radiance through Dust and Fog
Abstract
The obscurant effects of dust and fog can significantly degrade the performance of infrared (IR) sensors engaged in target acquisition. To quantify these effects, computer runs were conducted using the EOSAEL model FCLOUD for the 3 - to 5-micrometers and 8 - to 12-micrometers wavebands. FCLOUD was used to calculate beam transmission and path radiance through homogeneous ellipsoidal dust and fog clouds. Both advective and radiation fogs were considered. The EOSAEL models XSCALE and LOWTRAN 7 were also run to calculate transmission over the same wavebands for fog. These results compare favorably with FCLOUD. This study suggests that the performance of IR sensors in the wavebands investigated will be severely degraded in the presence of heavy or moderate fog. Under the dust conditions studied, IR transmission is considerably better than for fog. There is an expected transmission loss, however, with the inclusion of multiple scattering effects and a progressively greater loss as the cloud path length increases.... Infrared, Transmission, Path radiance, Dust, Fog.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 1993
- Accession Number
- ADA265825
Entities
People
- James Williams
Organizations
- United States Army Research Laboratory