What is the operational characteristic of a pulse radar system?

What is the operational characteristic of a pulse radar system?

• A. It detects and tracks on a range basis
• B. It detects and tracks on a velocity basis
• C. It detects only range
• D. It tracks only velocity

Answer: (A)

Pulse radar determines how far away a target is by timing how long a transmitted pulse takes to travel to the target and come back as an echo. That time delay gives the range, and by repeating this with successive pulses, the radar can update the target’s range as it moves, effectively tracking it in range. Velocity isn’t directly measured by the basic pulsed operation; obtaining speed usually needs Doppler processing or a different radar mode. So the system’s main characteristic is detecting and tracking targets based on their range.

Pulse radar determines how far away a target is by timing how long a transmitted pulse takes to travel to the target and come back as an echo. That time delay gives the range, and by repeating this with successive pulses, the radar can update the target’s range as it moves, effectively tracking it in range. Velocity isn’t directly measured by the basic pulsed operation; obtaining speed usually needs Doppler processing or a different radar mode. So the system’s main characteristic is detecting and tracking targets based on their range.