Due to the success of the hybrid lidar-radar approach for improving the performance of underwater optical imaging systems, the approach of this project is to apply this technique to atmospheric laser ranging and identification systems, such as ballistic missile detection systems. AMPAC proposes to fully understand how to model the propagation of a laser beam through various types of adverse weather conditions. Specifically, the objective is to better understand the propagation of the laser radiation itself and the effect of the radar subcarrier under representative weather conditions such as clouds, rain and fog as well as background limiting conditions such as direct sunlight.
