SBIR-STTR Award

This proposal is aimed at providing information and methods to make the problem of missile detection at launch tractable. SBIR Solicitation: "Kinetic Boost Phase intercept is a challenge because the threat missile must be detected and confirmed within seconds of launch." At present there is a dearth of knowledge about the spectral/temporal emission/electromagnetic properties associated with a missile launch. Therefore, it is not possible to rationally specify requirements for a launch detection sensor system. Details of the missile launch phenomenology must be understood so as to discriminate launch signals from other events. The approach of this proposal is to embody the currently understood launch physics in a computer code which is the product we will develop. The "Missile Launch Signature Code" would then be available to contractors. The output of the code would be the optical emission (UV/VIS/IR) and the electromagnetic properties of the ionized gases in the launch cloud. The philosophy behind the code would be to employ simple building block solutions to fluid mechanics and chemistry associated with the missile launch cloud. The methodology is aimed at rapid evaluation techniques that would have wider application in missile plume technology and possibly for environmental evaluations. Anticipated Benefits/Commercial Applications: The anticipated benefits are a capability to rationally specify a sensor system for the detection of missile launches. One output of the code would be the optical temporal/spectral signature of a missile launch. These properties set the requirements for the launch sensor design and optimization. In addition, the electromagnetic information generated by the "Launch Signature Code" may open the door to other possible launch detection technologies such as passive or active radar detection.

Keywords:
boost phase, sensor requirements, typing , missile launch signature, launch detection, rapid analysis

The development of a Missile Launch Signature Generation code is proposed to produce the time dependent spectral infrared signature of a missile during the launch phase of the flight. The Missile Launch Signature Code would provide valuable support for MDA programs such as BPI and ELDT whose sensor design components depend on the rapid opportunistic use of the launch observables. The rocket exhaust and its impingement on the ground, from either a solid or liquid motor, and the hot gases that escape a launch canister produce robust repeatable observables that can be used for missile detection and typing. The fluid mechanical, chemical, and radiative transport analyses employ approximate solutions producing a very rapid yet accurate solution. Future customized variants of the code would run in real time allowing them to be incorporated into operational systems. The apparent signature for a remote observer employs a transmission library based on MODTRAN calculations or is user supplied. In Phase I the accuracy of various components of the proposed code were demonstrated using comparisons to SPF and SPURC results. The Missile Launch Signature Code will interface with PARCS and SPURC to provide coupled optical and electromagnetic observables.

Keywords:
Infrared Signature, Boost Phase Intercept(Bpi), Plume Phenomenology, Missile Launch Modeling, Early Launch Detection And Tracking(Eldt), Missile Typin