Radar signals are radio waves used to detect objects in the atmosphere or underwater, and are used for weather and air traffic monitoring. The signals start from a transmitter and bounce back to a receiver, indicating an object’s distance, speed, and altitude. Radar is also used in military applications, but can be avoided through the use of non-reflective materials or jamming. Radar is also used for weather sensing, including determining the type of precipitation.
Radar signals are radio waves emitted by an object or animal that are used to detect objects in the atmosphere or underwater. These beacons are one of the primary ways to detect weather and monitor air traffic. Radar stands for bearing and radio range.
Radar signals start from a transmitter, which sends out the signal. In some cases, there is no specific object targeted. In other cases, specific objects may be targeted, especially in military applications. Once the radar hits the object, most of the radio signals scatter, but some are reflected back to a receiver. This is called echo. This is then transmitted, usually on a monitor, to an individual responsible for monitoring the results, such as a meteorologist or air traffic controller.
Radar signals travel at or very close to the speed of light, and therefore the feedback is nearly instantaneous. Radar can not only let someone know that an object is present, but also indicate its distance from the transmitter and receiver, its speed, and even its altitude. Due to the speed of radar signals, they must be measured with very precise equipment to determine distance and speed.
Radar signals are particularly useful in military applications for showing the presence of aircraft. If the aircraft is hostile, early warning through the use of radar allows countermeasures to be taken in an attempt to foil an attack. Since airplanes are usually made of metal, they are especially prone to being picked up by radar.
This vulnerability to radar detection has led some governments to engineer ways to avoid detection. One way might be to build planes using a different material that doesn’t reflect radar signals, but rather absorbs most of them. The entire aircraft may be constructed of such a material, or it may be possible to coat the aircraft with a substance that avoids radar signals. Radar signals can also be jammed by those sending radar signals to a receiver, which will indicate false echoes over a wide geographic range and render the radar useless for detecting specific objects.
Besides air traffic monitoring, another common use of radar is weather sensing. Radar can indicate a number of different factors concerning the weather, including cloud cover and the intensity of precipitation fall. Some radar systems are even able to determine the type of precipitation that is falling.
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