METHOD FOR SIMULTANEOUS DETECTION OF SHIPS AND RADAR MAPPING OF POLLUTANT SLICKS, BY MEANS OF ROTATING AIRBORNE RADAR

摘要

This invention relates to the field of sea surveillance and to the detection of drifting slicks of pollutants. The method according to the invention uses rotating-antenna pulse radar to implement two separate processing modes: - one conventional operating mode in which the radar carries out the detection, positioning and trajectory analysis of the objects (11) situated in the region of space that is scanned, - a mapping-type operating mode, in which the radar maps two bands of the surface (12) extending laterally in relation to the forward-moving direction of the aircraft, while producing the high-resolution image of the scanned areas, the two operating modes being implemented for different angular sectors at each rotation of the antenna. The invention applies in particular to radar systems equipping aircraft responsible for maritime and coastal patrol missions.