This is a highly proactive and effective detection method, particularly suitable for long distances and in adverse weather conditions.
Principle: Similar to traditional air defense radar, UAV detection radar emits electromagnetic waves (usually microwaves) into the airspace, then receives and analyzes the echoes reflected back after encountering an object.
Operating Method:
By calculating the time difference between transmitting and receiving the echoes, the target's distance can be determined.
By analyzing the changes in echo frequency (Doppler effect), the target's velocity can be calculated.
Due to the small size and slow speed of UAVs, and their typically composite material construction (small radar cross-section), UAV detection radar is usually a low-altitude gap-filling radar, using higher frequencies and more complex algorithms to identify the unique, minute "micro-Doppler" characteristics of UAVs (such as rotor rotation).
Advantages: Accurate range and velocity measurement; unaffected by weather and light; effectively detects autonomously flying UAVs.
Disadvantages: Limited detection capability for low-altitude, slow-moving, small targets; higher cost; prone to false alarms in environments with static and moving clutter, such as urban areas (e.g., mistaking flocks of birds for UAVs).