Influence of Plasma Sheath’s Velocity Field on ISAR Imaging of Hypersonic Target

Hypersonic vehicles are vehicles travelling faster than Mach 5 (five times the speed of sound). Hypersonic technologies have existed since the end of the 1950s, but recent developments of defence applications have led to their resurgence. Hypersonic weapons can be hypersonic (powered) cruise missiles or hypersonic glide vehicles (HGVs). The near-space trajectories of HGV, combined with their superior manoeuvrability, enable HGVs to evade existing space and terrestrial sensors used to track ballistic missiles, posing an immediate threat to today’s radar networks and making HGVs well-suited for intercontinental (> 5500 km) targets. Securing HGV detection and tracking systems is of great interest to at-risk nations and cybersecurity researchers alike. However, like hypersonic flight technologies, HGV defence technologies are heavily guarded secrets. The shortage of public-domain information did not stop academia from proposing various detection and tracking schemes, but a reasonable question is: “How credible and useful is current public-domain information, including academic publications, on HGV detection and tracking for academic researchers to base their cybersecurity research on?” To answer this question, we scanned and critically reviewed public-domain literature on HGV detection and tracking. We then identified ambiguities and knowledge gaps in the literature. In this paper, we provide a concise version of our multivocal literature review and an analysis of the identified ambiguities and knowledge gaps in our attempt to answer our earlier question.

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“…Interestingly, inverse synthetic aperture radar remains effective in the X band (8-12 GHz, see Xie et al, 2022).…”

Section: Radar-based Sensingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detecting and tracking hypersonic glide vehicles: A cybersecurity-engineering analysis of academic literature

Law

Gliponeo

Singh

et al. 2023

iccws

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“…In [23,24], a time-varying plasma sheath model based on the Scattering Matrix Method (SMM) was established, where the amplitude attenuation and phase shift of the radar echo signal were examined. In addition, by integrating the velocity field distribution of the non-uniform plasma sheath, a plasma sheath inhomogeneous reflection model is constructed in [3,[25][26][27][28]. It has been shown that the radar echo suffers from multitarget phenomenon on the 1-D range profile.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Focusing Algorithm of Range Profile for Plasma-Sheath-Enveloped Target

Shen,

Chen,

Bai

et al. 2024

Remote Sensing

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In this paper, a one-dimensional (1-D) range profile of the hypersonic target enveloped by a plasma sheath is investigated. Firstly, the non-uniform property of the plasma sheath is studied and its impact on the wideband electromagnetic (EM) wave is analyzed. A wideband radar echo model for the plasma-sheath-enveloped hypersonic target is constructed. Then, by exploiting the relationship among the incident depth, reflection intensity, and plasma velocity, it reveals that distinct scatter points in various areas of the target will suffer from varying reflection intensity and coupled velocity, leading to severe defocusing in the range profile. To tackle this issue, a novel focusing algorithm combing the Fractional Fourier Transform (FRFT) with the CLEAN technique is developed, which independently calculates the coupled plasma velocity and compensates for the phase error via a series of iterative procedures. Finally, the influence of the plasma sheath on the 1-D range profile and the effectiveness of the proposed focusing algorithm are validated through simulations.

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Electromagnetic scattering imaging characteristics of micro-rough surface high-speed vehicle

Zhang,

Li,

et al. 2024

Physics of Plasmas

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We present improvements to the physical optics method for high-frequency computations. This involves refining the calculation model such that the number of triangular facets is adequate to accurately represent the target structure. An illumination assessment is performed using the mesh model, and this is followed by a predetermined subdivision of the illuminated facets to achieve the required computational resolution. Subsequently, using a group of high-speed vehicle RAM C-II models with surfaces of different roughness, we calculate their one-dimensional high-resolution range profile and two-dimensional inverse synthetic aperture radar images at different reentry heights. The results demonstrate that the smooth-surfaced RAM C-II exhibits imaging limited to its head and tail, whereas the rough-surfaced RAM C-II reveals its entire contour. Furthermore, the presence of plasma diminishes the imaging efficacy of rough-surfaced targets, with the effect becoming more pronounced at lower altitudes. This study provides valuable insights for the identification of high-speed vehicles.

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Influence of Plasma Sheath’s Velocity Field on ISAR Imaging of Hypersonic Target

Cited by 3 publications

References 26 publications

Detecting and tracking hypersonic glide vehicles: A cybersecurity-engineering analysis of academic literature

Detecting and tracking hypersonic glide vehicles: A cybersecurity-engineering analysis of academic literature

Focusing Algorithm of Range Profile for Plasma-Sheath-Enveloped Target

Electromagnetic scattering imaging characteristics of micro-rough surface high-speed vehicle

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