Multi-mission Phased Array

Radar

By

Madiha Tahseen Shaik

CONTENTS• Introduction

• Overview of MPAR

• The Key to MPAR System

• MPAR Conceptual Design

• Transmitted peak power & Pulse compression

• Dual Polarization

• Air Space Coverage

• Capability Improvements

• Advantages

• Conclusion

INTRODUCTION

What is Phased Array Radar?

Phased Array Radar is an arrangement of

radar elements in array with relative phase

difference between successive elements.

OVERVIEW OF MPAR12m above the ground

There are 3 stories

• Top floor holds Array

antenna

• Middle floor houses for

real time data processing

and data acquisition

equipment

• Bottom floor holds

maintenance tools & test

apparatus

Artistic depiction of the PAR. Due to the effective aperture for different

look directions, the beam width is 1.5◦ at broadside and 2.1◦ at 45◦ off

broadside. Using electronic scanning, the beam can be steered rapidly from

one position to another. Here, this agile beam-steering capability is exploited

for rapid refractivity retrieval.

The Key to MPAR System

MPAR Panel design

Exploded view of the MPAR panel

Mpar conceptual design

MPAR architecture overview

Mpar characteristics

MPAR Parameters

Transmitted peak power

Minimum detectable weather reflectivity versus range for TDWR (black) and for MPAR

using 1 W peak-power TR-modules and a 100 usec pulse length (red), and for MPAR

using 10 W peak-power modules and a 10 usec pulse length (blue).

Pulse compression

MPAR minimum detectible weather reflectivity versus pulse compression ratio at the

short-long pulse transition range (lower curves) and at a range of 230 km(upper curves).

For the assumed 1 usec compressed pulse length, pulse compression ratio is equivalent

to long-pulse length.

Dual polarization

Dual polarized stacked patch antenna configuration and co- and cross-polarized

patterns versus steering angle.

Air space coverage

Airspace coverage comparison between current U.S. operational radar networks

(ASR 9, ASR-11, ARSR-1/2, ARSR-3, ARSR-4, NEXRAD, TDWR) and a conceptual

MPAR network.

Capability improvements

• Weather surveillance

• Non co-operative Aircraft Surveillance

• Air Traffic Control

Weather Surveillance

MPAR’s volumetric scan period for weather surveillance

will be substantially shorter than provided by pencil beam,

mechanically scanned weather radars. The factors supporting

rapid scanning include:

• simultaneous surveillance from each of the four antenna faces

• the ability to very rapidly cover higher elevation angles by

spoiling the transmit beam to cover a large angular volume in a

single radar dwell period

• agile beam capability which enables “beam multiplexing”

and/or adaptive, rapid-update scanning of individual storm

volumes of high operational significance.

Non co-operative Air craft surveillance

MPAR height measurement accuracy

versus range. Twenty-to-one monopulse

angle measurement improvement is

assumed relative to the physical

beamwidth.

Notional Range Doppler image of an

aircraft measured by a radar providing

simultaneous high-range resolution and

a large unambiguous Doppler interval

Air traffic control

• FAA used Automatic Dependence Surveillance-Broadcast(ADS-B) for ATC

• MPAR would not be cost-effective system if considered only as an ADS-B verification system

• But if it is deployed to meet the nation’s weather and co-operative target surveillance needs, MPAR could also provide an effective complement to ADS-B

advantages

• Economical

• No. of radar units are reduced

• Large life span, approximately 30 years

• Large coverage area

Solid state advantages

• Fully Solid state

• Electronic steering depending on phase

shifting

• Failure of one element doesn’t effect the

whole system

conclusion

Concept of multi-mission phased array radar (MPAR) network

described that it could provide high-quality weather and primary

aircraft surveillance capabilities.

It is also being evaluated that a Multi-function Phased Array

Radar (MPAR) is a possible cost-effective replacement for aging

weather and aircraft tracking radars.