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Over-the-horizon Radars
Over-the-horizon radar (OTH), sometimes called beyond the horizon radar (BTH), is a type of radar system with the ability to detect targets at very long ranges, typically hundreds to thousands of kilometres, beyond the radar horizon, which is the distance limit for ordinary radar. Several OTH radar systems were deployed starting in the 1950s and 1960s as part of early-warning radar systems, but airborne early warning systems have generally replaced these. OTH radars have recently been making a comeback, as the need for accurate long-range tracking has become less important since the ending of the Cold War, and less-expensive ground-based radars are once again being considered for roles such as maritime reconnaissance and drug enforcement. Technology The frequency of radio waves used by most radars, in the form of microwaves, propagate in straight lines. This generally limits the detection range of radar systems to objects on their horizon (generally referred to as "line of sigh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shortwave
Shortwave radio is radio transmission using radio frequencies in the shortwave bands (SW). There is no official definition of the band range, but it always includes all of the high frequency band (HF), which extends from 3 to 30 MHz (approximately 100 to 10 metres in wavelength). It lies between the medium frequency band (MF) and the bottom of the VHF band. Radio waves in the shortwave band can be reflected or refracted from a layer of electrically charged atoms in the atmosphere called the ionosphere. Therefore, short waves directed at an angle into the sky can be reflected back to Earth at great distances, beyond the horizon. This is called skywave or "skip" propagation. Thus shortwave radio can be used for communication over very long distances, in contrast to radio waves of higher frequency, which travel in straight lines (line-of-sight propagation) and are generally limited by the visual horizon, about 64 km (40 miles). Shortwave broadcasts of radio pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Space Weather
Space weather is a branch of space physics and aeronomy, or heliophysics, concerned with the varying conditions within the Solar System and its heliosphere. This includes the effects of the solar wind, especially on the Earth's magnetosphere, ionosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. Though physically distinct, space weather is analogous to the terrestrial weather of Earth's atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere (troposphere and stratosphere). The term "space weather" was first used in the 1950s and popularized in the 1990s. Later, it prompted research into "space climate", the large-scale and long-term patterns of space weather. History For many centuries, the effects of space weather were noticed, but not understood. Displays of aurora (astronomy), auroral light have long been observed at high latitudes. Beginnings In 1724, George Graham (clockmaker), George Graham reported that the needle of a magnetic compass was regularly deflected from magnetic north over the course of each day. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geomagnetic Storm
A geomagnetic storm, also known as a magnetic storm, is a temporary disturbance of the Earth's magnetosphere that is driven by interactions between the magnetosphere and large-scale transient Plasma (physics), plasma and magnetic field structures that originate on or near the Sun. The structures that produce geomagnetic storms include interplanetary coronal mass ejections (CME) and corotating interaction regions (CIR). The former often originate from solar active regions, while the latter originate at the boundary between high- and low-speed streams of solar wind. The frequency of geomagnetic storms increases and decreases with the sunspot cycle. During solar maximum, solar maxima, geomagnetic storms occur more often, with the majority driven by CMEs. When these structures reach Earth, the increase in the solar wind pressure initially compresses the magnetosphere. The solar wind's magnetic field interacts with the Earth's magnetic field and transfers an increased energy into th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clutter (radar)
Clutter is the unwanted return (echoes) in electronic systems, particularly in reference to radars. Such echoes are typically returned from ground, sea, rain, animals/insects, chaff and atmospheric turbulences, and can cause serious performance issues with radar systems. What one person considers to be unwanted clutter, another may consider to be a wanted target. However, targets usually refer to point scatterers and clutter to extended scatterers (covering many range, angle, and Doppler cells). The clutter may fill a volume (such as rain) or be confined to a surface (like land). A knowledge of the volume or surface area illuminated is required to estimated the echo per unit volume, η, or echo per unit surface area, σ° (the radar backscatter coefficient). Causes Clutter may be caused by man-made objects such as buildings and — intentionally — by radar countermeasures such as chaff. Other causes include natural objects such as terrain features, sea, precipitation, hail ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bistatic Radar
Bistatic radar is a radar system comprising a transmitter and receiver that are separated by a distance comparable to the expected target distance. Conversely, a conventional radar in which the transmitter and receiver are co-located is called a monostatic radar. A system containing multiple spatially diverse monostatic or bistatic radar components with a shared area of coverage is called '' multistatic radar''. Many long-range air-to-air and surface-to-air missile systems use semi-active radar homing, which is a form of bistatic radar. Types Pseudo-monostatic radars Some radar systems may have separate transmit and receive antennas, but if the angle subtended between transmitter, target and receiver (the bistatic angle) is close to zero, then they would still be regarded as monostatic or pseudo-monostatic. For example, some very long range HF radar systems may have a transmitter and receiver which are separated by a few tens of kilometres for electrical isolation, but as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ground Wave
Ground wave is a mode of radio propagation that consists of currents traveling through the earth. Ground waves propagate parallel to and adjacent to the surface of the Earth, and are capable of covering long distances by diffracting around the Earth's curvature. This radiation is also known as the Norton surface wave, or more properly the Norton ground wave, because ground waves in radio propagation are not confined to the surface. Groundwave contrasts with line-of-sight propagation that requires no medium, and skywave via the ionosphere. Ground wave is important for radio signals below 30 MHz, but is generally insignificant at higher frequencies where line-of-sight propagation dominates. AM and longwave broadcasting, navigation systems such as LORAN, low-frequency time signals, non-directional beacons, and short-range HF communications all make use of it. Range depends on frequency and ground conductivity, with lower frequencies and higher ground conductivity permitting lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Longwave
In radio, longwave (also spelled long wave or long-wave and commonly abbreviated LW) is the part of the radio spectrum with wavelengths longer than what was originally called the medium-wave (MW) broadcasting band. The term is historic, dating from the early 20th century, when the radio spectrum was considered to consist of LW, MW, and short-wave (SW) radio bands. Most modern radio systems and devices use wavelengths which would then have been considered 'ultra-short' (i.e. VHF, UHF, and microwave). In contemporary usage, the term ''longwave'' is not defined precisely, and its intended meaning varies. It may be used for radio wavelengths longer than 1,000 m i.e. frequencies smaller than 300 kilohertz (kHz), including the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) low frequency (LF, 30–300 kHz) and very low frequency (VLF, 3–30 kHz) bands. Sometimes the upper limit is taken to be higher than 300 kHz, but not above the start of the medium wave ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Solid-state (electronics)
Solid-state electronics are semiconductor electronics: electronic equipment that use semiconductor devices such as transistors, diodes and integrated circuits (ICs). The term is also used as an adjective for devices in which semiconductor electronics that have no moving parts replace devices with moving parts, such as the solid-state relay, in which transistor switches are used in place of a moving-arm electromechanical relay, or the solid-state drive (SSD), a type of semiconductor memory used in computers to replace hard disk drives, which store data on a rotating disk. History The term ''solid-state'' became popular at the beginning of the semiconductor era in the 1960s to distinguish this new technology. A semiconductor device works by controlling an electric current consisting of electrons or holes moving within a solid crystalline piece of semiconducting material such as silicon, while the thermionic vacuum tubes it replaced worked by controlling a current of el ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Computer
A computer is a machine that can be Computer programming, programmed to automatically Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (''computation''). Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as Computer program, ''programs'', which enable computers to perform a wide range of tasks. The term computer system may refer to a nominally complete computer that includes the Computer hardware, hardware, operating system, software, and peripheral equipment needed and used for full operation; or to a group of computers that are linked and function together, such as a computer network or computer cluster. A broad range of Programmable logic controller, industrial and Consumer electronics, consumer products use computers as control systems, including simple special-purpose devices like microwave ovens and remote controls, and factory devices like industrial robots. Computers are at the core of general-purpose devices ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Doppler Effect
The Doppler effect (also Doppler shift) is the change in the frequency of a wave in relation to an observer who is moving relative to the source of the wave. The ''Doppler effect'' is named after the physicist Christian Doppler, who described the phenomenon in 1842. A common example of Doppler shift is the change of pitch heard when a vehicle sounding a horn approaches and recedes from an observer. Compared to the emitted frequency, the received frequency is higher during the approach, identical at the instant of passing by, and lower during the recession. When the source of the sound wave is moving towards the observer, each successive cycle of the wave is emitted from a position closer to the observer than the previous cycle. Hence, from the observer's perspective, the time between cycles is reduced, meaning the frequency is increased. Conversely, if the source of the sound wave is moving away from the observer, each cycle of the wave is emitted from a position farther from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sunspot Cycle
The Solar cycle, also known as the solar magnetic activity cycle, sunspot cycle, or Schwabe cycle, is a periodic 11-year change in the Sun's activity measured in terms of variations in the number of observed sunspots on the Sun's surface. Over the period of a solar cycle, levels of solar radiation and ejection of solar material, the number and size of sunspots, solar flares, and coronal loops all exhibit a synchronized fluctuation from a period of minimum activity to a period of a maximum activity back to a period of minimum activity. The magnetic field of the Sun flips during each solar cycle, with the flip occurring when the solar cycle is near its maximum. After two solar cycles, the Sun's magnetic field returns to its original state, completing what is known as a Hale cycle. This cycle has been observed for centuries by changes in the Sun's appearance and by terrestrial phenomena such as aurora but was not clearly identified until 1843. Solar activity, driven by both ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
