Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “Radar”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Radar studies of the vertical distribution of insects migrating over southern Britain: the influence of temperature inversions on nocturnal layer concentrations.

Insects migrating over two sites in southern UK (Malvern in Worcestershire, and Harpenden in Hertfordshire) have been monitored continuously with nutating vertical-looking radars (VLRs) equipped with powerful control and analysis software. These observations make possible, for the first time, a systematic investigation of the vertical distribution of insect aerial density in the atmosphere, over temporal scales ranging from the short (instantaneous vertical profiles updated every 15 min) to the very long (profiles aggregated over whole seasons or even years). In the present paper, an outline is given of some general features of insect stratification as revealed by the radars, followed by a description of occasions during warm nights in the summer months when intense insect layers developed. Some of these nocturnal layers were due to the insects flying preferentially at the top of strong surface temperature inversions, and in other cases, layering was associated with higher-altitude temperature maxima, such as those due to subsidence inversions. The layers were formed from insects of a great variety of sizes, but peaks in the mass distributions pointed to a preponderance of medium-sized noctuid moths on certain occasions.

Altitude↗

Exposure survey of civilian airport radar workers in Australia.

An exposure survey of civilian airport radar workers within Australia has been carried out over a two year period beginning late 1983. This paper describes the survey equipment, measurement procedures, radar characteristics and survey results. It was found that, unless working on open waveguide and/or components utilizing waveguide slots, or within transmitter cabinets when high voltage arcing was occurring, personnel were, in general, not exposed to levels of radiation exceeding the specified limits in the recently published Australian radiofrequency exposure standard. Recommended changes to work procedures as a result of the survey are also discussed.

Air Pollution↗

Radiation hazard assessment of pulsed microwave radars.

Observed biological effects of pulsed microwave radiation are reviewed and the exposure standards for microwave radiation are summarized. The review indicates that the microwave auditory effect is the only well-established specific effect in realistic exposure situations. The threshold for the effect depends on the energy density per pulse and may be as low as 20 mJ/m2 for people with low hearing threshold. Energy density limits have been included in the most recent exposure standards. A new battery-operated, hand-held meter developed for measurements of pulse power densities around scanning radar antennas is described, and a simple new model for the calculation of power density in the main beam of radar antennas is presented. In the near field measured values differed from the calculated values by 2-3 dB.

Animals↗

Radar-based studies of the migratory flight of grasshoppers in the middle Niger area of Mali.

Some grasshopper species are pests of subsistence agriculture in the Sahelian zone of West Africa. Formulation of effective control strategies against these pests requires some knowledge of their migratory ability. In this paper a study is described in which radar was used to observe aspects of the nocturnal migratory behaviour of grasshoppers in the middle Niger delta. Mass take-off at dusk, layering and common orientation were regularly observed. Layering appeared to be related to air temperature. Mean orientation was often downwind but at other times crosswind headings occurred which added to the southerly component of the insects' displacement. Probable source areas of insects overflying the radar were identified by calculations of the insects' back-trajectories.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

Tracking butterfly flight paths across the landscape with harmonic radar.

For the first time, the flight paths of five butterfly species were successfully tracked using harmonic radar within an agricultural landscape. Until now, butterfly mobility has been predominantly studied using visual observations and mark-recapture experiments. Attachment of a light-weight radar transponder to the butterfly's thorax did not significantly affect behaviour or mobility. Tracks were analysed for straightness, duration, displacement, ground speed, foraging and the influence of linear landscape features on flight direction. Two main styles of track were identified: (A) fast linear flight and (B) slower nonlinear flights involving a period of foraging and/or looped sections of flight. These loops potentially perform an orientation function, and were often associated with areas of forage. In the absence of forage, linear features did not provide a guiding effect on flight direction, and only dense treelines were perceived as barriers. The results provide tentative support for non-random dispersal and a perceptual range of 100-200 m for these species. This study has demonstrated a methodology of significant value for future investigation of butterfly mobility and dispersal.

Animals↗

Cassini radar views the surface of Titan.

The Cassini Titan Radar Mapper imaged about 1% of Titan's surface at a resolution of approximately 0.5 kilometer, and larger areas of the globe in lower resolution modes. The images reveal a complex surface, with areas of low relief and a variety of geologic features suggestive of dome-like volcanic constructs, flows, and sinuous channels. The surface appears to be young, with few impact craters. Scattering and dielectric properties are consistent with porous ice or organics. Dark patches in the radar images show high brightness temperatures and high emissivity and are consistent with frozen hydrocarbons.

Atmosphere↗

The sand seas of Titan: Cassini RADAR observations of longitudinal dunes.

The most recent Cassini RADAR images of Titan show widespread regions (up to 1500 kilometers by 200 kilometers) of near-parallel radar-dark linear features that appear to be seas of longitudinal dunes similar to those seen in the Namib desert on Earth. The Ku-band (2.17-centimeter wavelength) images show approximately 100-meter ridges consistent with duneforms and reveal flow interactions with underlying hills. The distribution and orientation of the dunes support a model of fluctuating surface winds of approximately 0.5 meter per second resulting from the combination of an eastward flow with a variable tidal wind. The existence of dunes also requires geological processes that create sand-sized (100- to 300-micrometer) particulates and a lack of persistent equatorial surface liquids to act as sand traps.

Extraterrestrial Environment↗

Topography of the lunar poles from radar interferometry: a survey of cold trap locations.

Detailed topographic maps of the lunar poles have been obtained by Earth-based radar interferometry with the 3.5-centimeter wavelength Goldstone Solar System Radar. The interferometer provided maps 300 kilometers by 1000 kilometers of both polar regions at 150-meter spatial resolution and 50-meter height resolution. Using ray tracing, these digital elevation models were used to locate regions that are in permanent shadow from solar illumination and may harbor ice deposits. Estimates of the total extent of shadowed areas poleward of 87.5 degrees latitude are 1030 and 2550 square kilometers for the north and south poles, respectively.

Ice↗

Radar based rainfall forecast for sewage systems control.

There has been an increasing demand for accurate rainfall forecast in urban areas from the water industry. Current forecasting systems provided mainly by meteorological offices are based on large-scale prediction and are not well suited for this application. In order to devise a system especially designed for the dynamic management of a sewerage system the "RADAR" project was launched. The idea of this project was to provide a short-term small-scale prediction of rain based on radar images. The prediction methodology combines two methods. An extrapolation method based on a sophisticated cross correlation of images is optimised by a neural network technique. Three different application sites in Europe have been used to validate the system.

Cities↗

X-Band local area weather radar--preliminary calibration results.

DHI has developed a cost-effective X-Band Local Area Weather Radar (LAWR) with a typical range (radius) of 60 km, 500 x 500 m areal resolution and 253 reflection levels. The development is performed in a co-operation with a number of European partners, including Danish Meteorological Institute. The specifications of the weather radar and preliminary results from the calibration are presented. Good calibration results have been obtained using high-resolution rain gauges.

Calibration↗

Searching for the IRA "disappeared": ground-penetrating radar investigation of a churchyard burial site, Northern Ireland.

A search for the body of a victim of terrorist abduction and murder was made in a graveyard on the periphery of a major conurbation in Northern Ireland. The area is politically sensitive and the case of high profile. This required non-invasive, completely non-destructive and rapid assessment of the scene. A MALA RAMAC ground-penetrating radar system was used to achieve these objectives. Unprocessed and processed 400 MHz data show the presence of a collapse feature above and around a known 1970s burial with no similar collapse above the suspect location. In the saturated, clay-rich sediments of the site, 200 MHz data offered no advantage over 400 MHz data. Unprocessed 100 MHz data shows a series of multiples in the known burial with no similar features in the suspect location. Processed 100 MHz lines defined the shape of the collapse around the known burial to 2 m depth, together with the geometry of the platform (1 m depth) the gravedigger used in the 1970s to construct the site. In addition, processed 100 MHz data showed both the dielectric contrast in and internal reflection geometry of the soil imported above the known grave. Thus the sequence, geometry, difference in infill and infill direction of the grave was reconstructed 30 years after burial. The suspect site showed no evidence of shallow or deep inhumation. Subsequently, the missing person's body was found some distance from this site, vindicating the results and interpretation from ground-penetrating radar. The acquisition, processing, collapse feature and sequence stratigraphic interpretation of the known burial and empty (suspect) burial site may be useful proxies for other, similar investigations. GPR was used to evaluate this site within 3 h of the survey commencing, using unprocessed data. An additional day of processing established that the suspect body did not reside here, which was counter to police and community intelligence.

Burial↗

[A study on technology to identify human beings or animals in life-detector based on radar].

To determine whether a living object is human being or animal by detecting the respiration signal using the life-detector based on radar to penetrate the building or debris. To fully utilize the nonstationary character of the respiration signal, short time Fourier transform (STFT) is employed to get the signal's time-frequency representation. Singular value decomposition (SVD) is then used in the spectrogram to extract feature vector for pattern identification. Human beings and animals can be identified from the respiration sensed by the life-detector based on radar. Experimental results show that the method based on STFT and SVD is stable and efficient to differ from the human being and animal.

Animals↗

Visual serach performance during simulated radar observation with and without a sweepline.

A complex vigilance task was used to study the effect of a radar sweepline on attentional processes. The visual display was designed to approximate an automated air traffic control radar display. There were 28 men and women, half assigned to the sweep and half to the no-sweep condition, tested over a 2-h session. Although the no-sweep appeared to be generally superior to the sweep condition in all measures of detection of efficiency, none of the differences was significant. Measures of eye fixation paralleled the patterns of change in performance during the task session. However, as with performance, mean fixation durations for the sweep and no-sweep conditions did not differ, nor were individual differences in scanning activity related to performance. Possible reasons for the lack of relationship between scanning activity and performance are discussed.

Adolescent↗

Application of radar rainfall estimates for surveillance of Aedes taeniorhynchus larvae.

A preliminary investigation of land-based radar rainfall estimates for surveillance of Aedes taeniorhynchus larvae was conducted from January 1 to May 21, 1991 in Collier County, FL. Rainfall estimates from the National Weather Service RADAP II radar system, supplemented with tide gauge data, served as criteria for larval inspection. Rain, rain+tide and tide, respectively, triggered 48, 26 and 26% of the 14 proposed inspection trips. This system detected 7/8 larval broods found by Collier Mosquito Control District surveillance; the only brood not detected consisted of stragglers from an earlier brood exposed to cool weather and methoprene. A QUICKBASIC program that extracts Cartesian coordinates and rainfall estimates from RADAP II B-SCAN data was developed.

Aedes↗

[Chromosome studies of personnel exposed to electromagnetic radiation at radar centers].

The possibility that chromosome alterations take place in personnel exposed to electromagnetic radiation in radar centres has been studied. The study was carried out "blind" on short-term cultures of peripheral blood, some 450 metaphases being analysed for each case. No aberrations were found in either radar operators or controls and there was no statistically significant difference between them.

Adult↗

Abandoned Mid-Canada Radar Line sites in the Western James region of Northern Ontario, Canada: a source of organochlorines for First Nations people?

The potential exists for human exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and other contaminants originating from abandoned Mid-Canada Radar Line (MCRL) sites in sub-arctic Canada. We examined patterns of differences with respect to body burden of organochlorines (lipid-adjusted) between residents of the Ontario First Nations of Fort Albany (the site of MCRL Site 050) and Kashechewan (no radar base) and Hamilton (an industrial, southern Ontario community) to assess whether the presence of Site 050 influenced organochlorine body burden with respect to the people of Fort Albany. PCBs (Aroclor 1260 and summation operator14 PCBs congeners [CBs]) and DDE in the plasma of Fort Albany and Kashechewan subjects were elevated relative to Hamilton participants. PCB and DDE-plasma levels in First Nation women were of comparable magnitude to those reported for Inuit women living in the west/central Northwest Territories. Significantly lower DDE/DDT ratios observed for Fort Albany indicates exposure to higher levels of DDT compared to Kashechewan. The probable source of DDT exposure for Fort Albany people is the DDT-contaminated soil surrounding buildings of Site 050. The results of the correspondence analysis (CA) indicated that people from Hamilton had relatively higher pesticides and lower CB body burdens, while people from Fort Albany and Kashechewan exhibited relatively higher CBs and lower pesticide levels (CA-1). The separation of Fort Albany and Kashechewan from Hamilton was also clear using questionnaire data (i.e., plotting dietary principal component [PC]-1 scores against PC-2); PC-1 was correlated with the consumption of a traditional diet. Separation of Kashechewan and Albany residents occurred because the people of Kashechewan ate more traditional meats and consumed shorebirds. Only one significant relationship was found between PC analysis and contaminant loadings; PC-1 versus CA-3 for Kashechewan. The presence of Site 050 on Anderson Island appears to have influenced organochlorine body burden of the people of Fort Albany. ANCOVA results revealed that it was not activity on Anderson Island that was important, but activity on Site 050 was the influential variable. When these results are considered with the DDE/DDT ratio data and the CB 187 results (Fort Albany and Kashechewan residents differed significantly), the findings are suggestive that Site 050 did influence organochlorine body burden of people from Fort Albany.

Adult↗

Mapping tree root systems with ground-penetrating radar.

A ground-penetrating radar (GPR) technique was used to study the three-dimensional distribution of root systems of large (DBH = 14 to 35 cm) oak trees (Quercus petraea (Mattusch.) Liebl.) in relatively dry, luvisoil on loamy deluvium and weathered granodiorite. We used a pulse EKKO 1000 GPR system, a profile grid of 0.25 x 0.25 meters, at 0.05 m intervals, and a signal frequency of 450 MHz, to assure resolution of about 3 cm in both directions (further increases in resolution up to 1 cm are possible with the system). Coarse root density was 6.5 m m(-2) of stand area and 3.3 m m(-3) of soil volume. Maximum rooting depth of the experimental oaks was 2 m, and the root ground plan was significantly larger (about 1.5 times) than the crown ground plan. Based on earlier studies of Quercus robur L. from floodplain forests, where the extent of the root systems was much smaller (root ground plan:crown ground plan ratio of 0.6), we conclude that the high root ground plan:crown ground plan ratio indicates less favorable conditions of water supply at the experimental site than in the floodplain forest. The ground-penetrating radar system is noninvasive and allows relatively rapid and repeated measurements of the distribution of coarse root systems of trees.

Journal Article↗

Remote monitoring of the earthquake cycle using satellite radar interferometry.

The earthquake cycle is poorly understood. Earthquakes continue to occur on previously unrecognized faults. Earthquake prediction seems impossible. These remain the facts despite nearly 100 years of intensive study since the earthquake cycle was first conceptualized. Using data acquired from satellites in orbit 800 km above the Earth, a new technique, radar interferometry (InSAR), has the potential to solve these problems. For the first time, detailed maps of the warping of the Earth's surface during the earthquake cycle can be obtained with a spatial resolution of a few tens of metres and a precision of a few millimetres. InSAR does not need equipment on the ground or expensive field campaigns, so it can gather crucial data on earthquakes and the seismic cycle from some of the remotest areas of the planet. In this article, I review some of the remarkable observations of the earthquake cycle already made using radar interferometry and speculate on breakthroughs that are tantalizingly close.

Journal Article↗