A Next-Generation Over-The-Horizon Radar

[Gunnar Larson]

This is very cool. Check out the video.

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http://www.raytheonmissilesanddefense.com/news/2023/03/27/over-the-horizon-radar


Raytheon Technologies is building a next-generation over-the-horizon radar,
offering advanced detection of cruise missiles.


April 05, 2023

For decades, the focus of missile defense for the U.S. and its allies has
been on nuclear ballistic weapons, which can fly high and fast to strike a
target half a world away.

But another threat lurks beneath: cruise missiles, which fly lower and
slower but, as seen in strikes on Ukraine, can carry devastating payloads.

One important defense against those threats are surface-based radars that
can see over the horizon to provide earlier warning and cue defensive
measures.

Raytheon Technologies is using its decades of expertise as an integrator of
missile defense systems to develop a first-of-its-kind, next-generation
over-the-horizon radar to defend the homeland. The new system will be able
to quickly detect, track and classify cruise missiles – day or night, and
in any conditions, including when the northern lights, also known as the
aurora borealis, are on display.

“The next-generation over-the-horizon radar represents a quantum leap
forward in our ability to not only detect and track aircraft and surface
vessels, but also detect and defend the homeland against cruise missiles
and other weapons,” said Paul Ferraro, president of Air Power at Raytheon
Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business. “With its
unprecedented sensitivity, this new radar technology will be a game
changer, providing our military with an unparalleled advantage in cruise
missile defense.”

Over-the-horizon radars can detect objects hundreds to thousands of miles
away beyond the range limit of conventional radars. They operate in the
high-frequency band of 5 MHz to 35 MHz, using powerful radio signals
transmitted by a large antenna.

What sets them apart from other missile defense systems is that they can
see around the curves of Earth. They do that through what is essentially a
bank shot: they bounce their signal off the ionosphere, then the target,
which reflects the energy back to the ionosphere and ultimately to the
radar's receiver.



The next-generation over-the-horizon radar builds on technology and design
that power a system known as ROTHR, which the U.S. Navy uses as its primary
detection system for border security and drug smuggling.

That system, which stands for Relocatable Over-The-Horizon Radar, is built
by Raytheon Technologies. The company's experts are leading the integration
of several advancements in its maritime capabilities.

And that work, naturally, will benefit the development of a
first-of-its-kind system, with a 2D array and digital receiver.

“We’re leveraging more than three decades of ROTHR and HF (high frequency)
technologies across our portfolios as well as research and investment to
deliver a next-generation system built to detect advanced threats,” program
manager Jeremy Hurley said.

Raytheon Technologies has worked with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, the
U.S. Missile Defense Agency and research laboratories to continuously
improve technologies critical to over-the-horizon radars, such as systems
processing.
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