TRACKING SWERLING FLUCTUATING TARGETS AT LOW ALTITUDE OVER THE SEA

Accurate tracking of targets flying at low altitudes above a smooth surface is difficult because of the surface reflection. We propose a solution based on deterministic physical modeling of the specular multipath and the maximum likelihood (ML) method. The techniques are described, the Cramer-Rao (CR) bounds derived, and the results of performance studies presented including comparison with classical Fourier beamforming. We use the target models described by Swerling. We also present experimental results obtained with two X-band experimental systems over sea conditions varying from sea state 0 (SS0) to sea state 3 (SS3).