Radarimagequality
Anumberoffactorscanaffectthequalityofaradarimage,including
echoes,seaclutter,andotherinterference.
Notallradarechoesareproducedbyvalidtargets.Spuriousechoes
maybecausedby:
•Sidelobes.
•Indirectechoes.
•Multipleechoes.
•Blindsectors.
•Sea,rain,orsnowclutter.
•Interference.
Throughobservation,practice,andexperience,youcangenerally
detecttheseconditionsveryquicklyandusetheradarcontrolsto
minimizethem.
SideLobes
Sidelobepatternsareproducedbysmallamountsofenergyfrom
thetransmittedpulsesthatareradiatedoutsidethenarrowmain
beam.Theeffectsofsidelobesaremostnoticeablewithtargetsat
shortranges(normallybelow3nm),andinparticularwithlarger
objects.Sidelobeechoesformeitherarcsontheradarscreen
similartorangerings,oraseriesofechoesformingabrokenarc.
IndirectEchoes
Thereareseveraltypesofindirectechoesorghostimages.These
sometimeshavetheappearanceoftrueechoes,butingeneralthey
areintermittentandpoorlydened.