A major development in radar technology, according to Chinese scientists, could significantly advance the development of the world’s search for fast weapons. A Tsinghua University division of electrical engineering professor Zheng Xiaoping has created a radar system that can track 10 coming hypersonic missiles moving at Mach 20 with amazing precision. Additionally, this technology has the ability to find fake targets.
During ground- based simulations, the radar demonstrated an error margin of just 28 centimeters ( 11 inches ) when estimating the distance of a missile traveling at nearly 7 kilometers ( 4.3 miles ) per second. Also, the system was 99.7 percent accurate in estimating the rocket’s speed, a miracle recently deemed impossible, a South China Morning Post statement said.
Electrons must move at extremely high speeds in order to generate and analyze radar signals with such precision, which could harm circuit board. By incorporating laser into the sensor system, Zheng’s team overcame this setback by allowing the transmission of data between crucial networks at the speed of light. This development makes it possible for the first time to produce and process much more difficult microwave signals, enabling the exact measurement of ultra-high-speed objects.
The new micro optoelectronic sensor has a more than 600 km detection range. Because it is light and small, it is ideal to be mounted on plane or air-defense missiles. For the next era of fire-control scanners, military experts believe this technology is essential.
In an effort to close the fast arms space with China, the United States tested an air-launched fast weapon on Guam in March. Some American military spectators saw this test as a direct reaction to China, demonstrating the US government’s ability to use high-penetration weapons against Chinese coastal cities.
Due to their higher velocity and uncertain maneuvers, which allow them to penetrate air-defense networks, fast weapons present a major challenge for interception as opposed to traditional ballistic missiles. Although the development of new interceptor missiles and laser weapons has the ability to neutralize coming hypersonic threats, accurate target position and velocity data is necessary for effective use.
The Pentagon had a difficult time getting a fire-control radar capable of tracking hypersonic targets with high precision for interceptor missile systems, according to a report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies ( CSIS ). ” If you have more precise data, you could use an interceptor that maybe would n’t need to maneuver as much, and could be cheaper”, said Masao Dahlgren, the report’s author with the CSIS Missile Defense Project.
The appearance of ghostly images on sensor screens, where bogus targets frequently outnumber real ones, is a problem with high-speed moving targets. Zheng’s group addressed this by using light technology to send three different bands of microwaves together, improving recognition accuracy. According to the SCMP statement, they also created an algorithm that compares signals of different frequencies to eliminate false objective interference.
Zheng and his team have developed a full sensor system, including cards and transmitters, and tested its effectiveness in a lab using tools to create the action of hypersonic targets in the environment.
