SEA CLUTTER MODELING FOR THE EVALUATION OF MARITIME RADAR DETECTION CAPABILITIES

Abstract

Evaluating the performance of a radar system before the construction of prototypes or deployment is a critical step in the design process that guides the design choices, enabling optimal performance in the desired deployment environment. For maritime deployments, radar systems struggle with backscattered radiation from the ever-changing surface of the ocean, which obscures targets of interest, preventing positive detections from occurring. This thesis seeks to predict the performance of a maritime deployed radar system based on a dynamic simulation with real-world inputs to assess the operational capacity of a radar in the presence of sea clutter. Through a study of electromagnetic scattering characteristics and ocean wave behavior, the simulation presented in this thesis will serve as a launching point for gauging the performance of an X-band radar system. To aid in detection capabilities, clutter mitigation and cancellation techniques will be utilized to unmask small targets in the scene that cohabit the cluttered environment, and Constant False Alarm Rate (CFAR) detection techniques will be implemented to output a binary decision about the presence of a target in the scene. By simulating the expected returns from the sea surface with the expected returns from a small target near the ocean surface in a geometrically accurate simulation, the radar system's ability to perform in the harsh environment will be evaluated, and system design choices or constraints can be identified before a substantial investment is made into prototyping.