Ground based radar systems have gained operational importance as wars became more limited and urban. I-HLS reports. The need to detect and identify targets under any condition has spurred a vast effort to develop more advanced, easier to operate ground based radar systems.
Elta, the fully owned subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) is Israel’s radar house. Using its vast experience the company has developed some of the more advanced radar systems like the “Green Pine” phased array radar that is part of the Israeli Arrow system used to protect Israel from ballistic missiles, and the systems that are used on airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft.
But the operations on the ground need advanced radars and Elta has been developing and manufacturing them for many years.
In General the ground radars made by Elta can be put into four main categories according to the time of development or “generation”:
- The first generation radars are Rotating Analog Radars.
- The second generation radars are Rotating Radars with Analog Transmitter and Digital Processing in Receiver.
- The third generation radars are non Rotating Radar covering a Sector by Electronic Beam Scanning.
- Some of the third generation radars are rotating and more capable and therefore considered to be third and a half Generation.
- The fourth Generation is Persistent Surveillance Radar covering instantaneously a sector by Multi-beam.
Elta radars detect targets by Doppler Effect and classify targets by Doppler Frequency.
The family of ground radars uses a “Track before Detect” algorithm to reject moving vegetation bring recognized as legal targets (since the vegetation does not change its distance).
Starting from second Generation, Digital Background Maps can be implemented which allows designating Areas of Interest or Areas of Non-interest to save resources. Alarm Zones within Areas of Interest can also be designated. The Elta ground radars also have a “Rain Algorithm” to enable target detection even in rainy conditions.
The Elta ground surveillance radars operate in all weather conditions. The company usually recommends adding day/night electro-optical systems to enable target Identification.
