General Characteristics of Radar Stations for Physical Protection of Nuclear Objects

The chapter systematizes the main characteristics of radar stations (RS) as a means of physical protection of nuclear and other facilities. Main types of radar stations are analyzed. It is shown that the dominant type among radars are centimeter and millimeter range pulse radars. They use one antenna, are quite simple and ergonomic when used for their intended purpose. Concepts of tactical and technical characteristics of radar stations used in the systems of physical protection of protected objects are analyzed. The first one includes range, field of view, angle and distance resolution, alert time and continuous operation time, noise immunity and antenna height. The last one includes: carrier frequency, radiated power, sensitivity of the receiving device, width of the antenna's directivity, antenna directivity and gain, signal recognition coefficient, space scanning speed, power consumption and weight-overall parameters. Features of the main tactical characteristic-range of the radar station are considered. It is shown that in order to determine the target detection range, taking into account the influence of environmental conditions and terrain (at the location of the radar station), it is necessary to use system of equations containing dependences of detection ranges of energy, geometric, expected and actual (statistical), the first three of which are used for analytical calculations, and the fourth-for processing the actual results of detection. Correspondence of analytical calculations to the actual results also makes it possible to assess reliability of assumptions about the reflective properties of targets in various environmental conditions during the protection of nuclear facilities.