What is a radar resolution cell?

What is a radar resolution cell?

• A. The smallest volume of airspace in which a radar cannot determine the presence of more than one target return
• B. A measurement of instantaneous signal power
• C. The frequency range of the radar
• D. The time interval between pulses

Answer: (A)

The main idea is that a radar resolution cell is the smallest volume of airspace where two targets can still be distinguished as separate echoes. If two targets lie within the same resolution cell, their returns overlap and the radar can’t tell them apart, so they appear as one target. This cell is defined in three dimensions by range (distance), azimuth, and elevation, with range resolution set by the transmitted bandwidth (roughly c/(2B)) and angular resolution by the antenna beamwidth. That’s why the correct description is the smallest volume where more than one target return cannot be determined. The other ideas don’t describe what a resolution cell is: instantaneous power is about signal strength at a moment; frequency range is about the radar’s spectrum; and the time between pulses is the PRI, not a measure of how targets are resolved in space.

The main idea is that a radar resolution cell is the smallest volume of airspace where two targets can still be distinguished as separate echoes. If two targets lie within the same resolution cell, their returns overlap and the radar can’t tell them apart, so they appear as one target. This cell is defined in three dimensions by range (distance), azimuth, and elevation, with range resolution set by the transmitted bandwidth (roughly c/(2B)) and angular resolution by the antenna beamwidth. That’s why the correct description is the smallest volume where more than one target return cannot be determined.

The other ideas don’t describe what a resolution cell is: instantaneous power is about signal strength at a moment; frequency range is about the radar’s spectrum; and the time between pulses is the PRI, not a measure of how targets are resolved in space.