SpaceGroundBasedRadar

R2026b

Sensor specification for ground-based radar for space surveillance

Since R2026b

Description

A SpaceGroundBasedRadar object contains a sensor specification for a ground-based radar used for space surveillance. You can use the SpaceGroundBasedRadar object as an input to multiSensorTargetTracker. The sensor specification models a scanning radar that provides azimuth, elevation, range, and range-rate measurements of satellites from a fixed ground station.

Note

The SpaceGroundBasedRadar sensor specification requires an Aerospace Toolbox license.

Creation

To create a SpaceGroundBasedRadar object, use the trackerSensorSpec function with the input arguments "space", "ground-based", and "radar". For example:

spec = trackerSensorSpec("space","ground-based","radar")

Properties

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`ReferenceFrame` — Reference frame for sensor data
`"NED"` (default) | `"ENU"` | `"ECEF"`

Reference frame for sensor data, specified as "NED", "ENU", or "ECEF". This property defines the reference frame used to interpret the ground station orientation, mounting location, and mounting angles.

Example: "ECEF"

Data Types: char | string

`MaxNumLooksPerUpdate` — Maximum number of looks per update
`30` (default) | `1` | positive integer

Maximum number of looks per update, specified as 1 if the sensor is not scanning and as a positive integer greater than 1 if the sensor is scanning.

Example: 40

Data Types: single | double

`MaxNumMeasurementsPerUpdate` — Maximum number of measurements per update
`10` (default) | positive integer

Maximum number of measurements per update, specified as a positive integer.

Example: 10

Data Types: single | double

`GroundStationPosition` — Geodetic position of ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real vector

Geodetic position of the ground station, specified as a 1-by-3 real vector of the form [latitude longitude altitude], where latitude and longitude are in degrees and altitude is in meters above the WGS-84 ellipsoid.

Example: [42.3601 -71.0589 0]

Data Types: single | double

`GroundStationOrientation` — Orientation of ground station
`eye(3)` (default) | 3-by-3 rotation matrix

Orientation of the ground station, specified as a 3-by-3 rotation matrix. The rotation matrix defines the orientation of the ground station body frame relative to the reference frame specified by the ReferenceFrame property.

Data Types: single | double

`MountingLocation` — Sensor location on ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real-valued vector

Sensor location on the ground station, specified as a 1-by-3 real-valued vector of form [x_m y_m z_m]. This property defines the coordinates of the sensor with respect to the ground station origin. The default value specifies that the sensor origin is at the origin of the ground station. Units are in meters.

Example: [1.25 -0.1 0.8]

Data Types: single | double

`MountingAngles` — Orientation of sensor on ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real-valued vector

Orientation of the sensor with respect to the ground station, specified as a 1-by-3 real-valued vector of form [z_yaw y_pitch x_roll]. Each element of the vector corresponds to an intrinsic Euler angle rotation that carries the body axes of the ground station to the sensor axes. The three elements describe the rotations around the z-, y-, and x-axis sequentially. Units are in degrees.

Data Types: single | double

`HasElevation` — Enable sensor to report target elevation
`true` (default) | `false`

Enable sensor to report target elevation, specified as true or false.

Example: true

Data Types: logical

`HasRangeRate` — Enable sensor to report target range rate
`true` (default) | `false`

Enable sensor to report the target range rate, specified as true or false.

Example: true

Data Types: logical

`FieldOfView` — Field of view of sensor beam
`[60 20]` (default) | 1-by-2 real-valued vector

Field of view of the sensor beam at each look angle, specified as a 1-by-2 real-valued vector of the form [azimuth elevation]. Units are in degrees.

Example: [80 10]

Data Types: single | double

`RangeLimits` — Minimum and maximum detection range of sensor
`[1e5 2e6]` (default) | 1-by-2 nonnegative real-valued vector

Minimum and maximum detection range of the sensor, specified as a 1-by-2 nonnegative real-valued vector of the form [Rmin Rmax]. The radar does not detect targets that are outside this range. The maximum range, Rmax, must be greater than the minimum range, Rmin. Units are in meters.

Example: [200e3 2000e3]

Data Types: single | double

`RangeRateLimits` — Minimum and maximum detection range rate of sensor
`[-1e4 1e4]` (default) | 1-by-2 real-valued vector

Minimum and maximum detection range rate of the sensor, specified as a 1-by-2 real-valued vector of the form [RRmin RRmax]. The radar does not detect targets that are outside this range rate. To specify a maximum range-rate of RR, use [-RR RR]. Units are in meters per second.

To enable this property, set the HasRangeRate property to true.

Example: [-5000 5000]

Data Types: single | double

`DetectionProbability` — Probability of detecting target inside coverage limits
`0.9` (default) | scalar in the range (0,1]

Probability of detecting a target inside the coverage limits, specified as a scalar in the range (0, 1].

Example: 0.75

Data Types: single | double

`AzimuthResolution` — Azimuth resolution of sensor
`1` (default) | positive scalar

Azimuth resolution of the sensor, specified as a positive scalar. The azimuth resolution defines the minimum separation in azimuth angle at which the sensor can distinguish between two targets. Units are in degrees.

Example: 0.3

Data Types: single | double

`RangeResolution` — Range resolution of sensor
`100` (default) | positive scalar

Range resolution of the sensor, specified as a positive scalar. The range resolution defines the minimum separation by the range at which the sensor can distinguish between two targets. Units are in meters.

Example: 30

Data Types: single | double

`ElevationResolution` — Elevation resolution of sensor
`5` (default) | positive scalar

Elevation resolution of the sensor, specified as a positive scalar. The elevation resolution defines the minimum separation by the elevation angle at which the sensor can distinguish between two targets. Units are in degrees.

To enable this property, set the HasElevation property to true.

Example: 2.5

Data Types: single | double

`RangeRateResolution` — Range rate resolution of sensor
`10` (default) | positive scalar

Range rate resolution of the sensor, specified as a positive scalar. The range rate resolution defines the minimum separation by the range rate at which the sensor can distinguish between two targets. Units are in meters per second.

To enable this property, set the HasRangeRate property to true.

Example: 2.5

Data Types: single | double

`FalseAlarmRate` — False alarm report rate
`1e-6` (default) | scalar in the range (0,1]

False alarm report rate within each sensor resolution cell, specified as a positive scalar in the range (0,1]. Units are dimensionless. The object determines resolution cells from the AzimuthResolution and RangeResolution properties and, when enabled, from the ElevationResolution and RangeRateResolution properties.

Example: 1e-4

Data Types: single | double

`Terrain` — Terrain data file to read
string scalar | character vector

Terrain data file to read, specified as a string scalar or character vector representing the path to a DTED data file. The terrain impacts the computation of detection probability of targets.

Example: "./n39_w106_3arc_v2.dt1"

Object Functions

dataFormat Structure for data format required by task-oriented tracker

Examples

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Create and Configure Ground-Based Radar Sensor Specification for Space Surveillance

Open Live Script

Create a ground-based radar sensor specification for space surveillance.

spec = trackerSensorSpec("space","ground-based","radar")

spec = 
  SpaceGroundBasedRadar with properties:

           MaxNumLooksPerUpdate: 30    
    MaxNumMeasurementsPerUpdate: 10    

              ReferenceFrame: 'NED'                      
       GroundStationPosition: [0 0 0]         [deg deg m]
    GroundStationOrientation: [3⨯3 double]               
            MountingLocation: [0 0 0]         m          
              MountingAngles: [0 0 0]         deg        

       HasElevation: 1                    
       HasRangeRate: 1                    
        FieldOfView: [60 20]           deg
        RangeLimits: [1e+05 2e+06]     m  
    RangeRateLimits: [-10000 10000]    m/s

      AzimuthResolution: 1      deg
        RangeResolution: 100    m  
    ElevationResolution: 5      deg
    RangeRateResolution: 10     m/s

    DetectionProbability: 0.9      
          FalseAlarmRate: 1e-06    

    Terrain: 'none'

Configure the ground station position for a radar located in Boston, Massachusetts.

spec.GroundStationPosition = [42.3601 -71.0589 0];

Set the field of view and range limits.

spec.FieldOfView = [50 20];
spec.RangeLimits = [1.5e5 2e6];

Use the dataFormat function on the specification to determine the data format required for the update. The ground-based radar sensor specification requires datetime data type for LookTime and DetectionTime.

trackerData = dataFormat(spec)

trackerData = struct with fields:
             LookTime: [01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    …    ] (1×30 datetime)
          LookAzimuth: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
        LookElevation: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
        DetectionTime: [01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970    01-Jan-1970]
              Azimuth: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
            Elevation: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
                Range: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
            RangeRate: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
      AzimuthAccuracy: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
    ElevationAccuracy: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
        RangeAccuracy: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]
    RangeRateAccuracy: [0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0]

More About

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Data Format Required By Task-Oriented Tracker

After you initialize a tracker using this object, you need sensor data to update the tracker. For a full list of required sensor data and their descriptions, see the table below. See the dataFormat function for details on updating the tracker with sensor data.

Note

The ground-based radar sensor specification for space surveillance requires datetime data type for the LookTime and DetectionTime fields.

Field Name	Description	Comment
`LookTime`	Timestamps of sensor scans, specified as an N-element `datetime` row vector. N must be smaller than the value specified in the `MaxNumLooksPerUpdate` property.	None
`LookAzimuth`	Look azimuth angles at `LookTime`, specified as an N-element row vector. Units are in degrees.	None
`LookElevation`	Look elevation angles at `LookTime`, specified as an N-element row vector. Units are in degrees.	Applies only when the `HasElevation` property is set to `true`.
`DetectionTime`	Timestamps of detections, specified as an M-element `datetime` row vector. M must be smaller than the value specified in the `MaxNumMeasurementsPerUpdate` property.	None
`Azimuth`	Detection azimuth angles of observed targets, specified as an M-element row vector. Units are in degrees.	None
`Elevation`	Detection elevation angles of observed targets, specified as an M-element row vector. Units are in degrees.	Applies only when the `HasElevation` property is set to `true`.
`Range`	Detection range to the observed targets, specified as an M-element row vector. Units are in meters.	None
`RangeRate`	Detection range rate of observed targets, specified as an M-element row vector. Units are in meters per second.	Applies only when the `HasRangeRate` property is set to `true`.
`AzimuthAccuracy`	Standard deviation of azimuth angle measurements, specified as an M-element row vector. Units are in degrees.	None
`ElevationAccuracy`	Standard deviation of elevation angle measurements, specified as an M-element row vector. Units are in degrees.	Applies only when the `HasElevation` property is set to `true`.
`RangeAccuracy`	Standard deviation of range measurements, specified as an M-element row vector. Units are in meters.	None
`RangeRateAccuracy`	Standard deviation of range rate measurements, specified as an M-element row vector. Units are in meters per second.	Applies only when the `HasRangeRate` property is set to `true`.

Tips

To deploy an application that uses satellite specifications using MATLAB^® Compiler™, add propagateOrbit as a dependency to the deployed application package. To do this, you can either use the -a filepath (MATLAB Compiler) input argument of the mcc (MATLAB Compiler) function or use the %#function (MATLAB Compiler) pragma in your entry-point function.

Version History

Introduced in R2026b

SpaceGroundBasedRadar

Description

Creation

Properties

`ReferenceFrame` — Reference frame for sensor data
`"NED"` (default) | `"ENU"` | `"ECEF"`

`MaxNumLooksPerUpdate` — Maximum number of looks per update
`30` (default) | `1` | positive integer

`MaxNumMeasurementsPerUpdate` — Maximum number of measurements per update
`10` (default) | positive integer

`GroundStationPosition` — Geodetic position of ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real vector

`GroundStationOrientation` — Orientation of ground station
`eye(3)` (default) | 3-by-3 rotation matrix

`MountingLocation` — Sensor location on ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real-valued vector

`MountingAngles` — Orientation of sensor on ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real-valued vector

`HasElevation` — Enable sensor to report target elevation
`true` (default) | `false`

`HasRangeRate` — Enable sensor to report target range rate
`true` (default) | `false`

`FieldOfView` — Field of view of sensor beam
`[60 20]` (default) | 1-by-2 real-valued vector

`RangeLimits` — Minimum and maximum detection range of sensor
`[1e5 2e6]` (default) | 1-by-2 nonnegative real-valued vector

`RangeRateLimits` — Minimum and maximum detection range rate of sensor
`[-1e4 1e4]` (default) | 1-by-2 real-valued vector

`DetectionProbability` — Probability of detecting target inside coverage limits
`0.9` (default) | scalar in the range (0,1]

`AzimuthResolution` — Azimuth resolution of sensor
`1` (default) | positive scalar

`RangeResolution` — Range resolution of sensor
`100` (default) | positive scalar

`ElevationResolution` — Elevation resolution of sensor
`5` (default) | positive scalar

`RangeRateResolution` — Range rate resolution of sensor
`10` (default) | positive scalar

`FalseAlarmRate` — False alarm report rate
`1e-6` (default) | scalar in the range (0,1]

`Terrain` — Terrain data file to read
string scalar | character vector

Object Functions

Examples

Create and Configure Ground-Based Radar Sensor Specification for Space Surveillance

More About

Data Format Required By Task-Oriented Tracker

Tips

Version History

See Also

Functions

Objects

Topics

SpaceGroundBasedRadar

Description

Creation

Properties

ReferenceFrame — Reference frame for sensor data "NED" (default) | "ENU" | "ECEF"

MaxNumLooksPerUpdate — Maximum number of looks per update 30 (default) | 1 | positive integer

MaxNumMeasurementsPerUpdate — Maximum number of measurements per update 10 (default) | positive integer

GroundStationPosition — Geodetic position of ground station [0 0 0] (default) | 1-by-3 real vector

GroundStationOrientation — Orientation of ground station eye(3) (default) | 3-by-3 rotation matrix

MountingLocation — Sensor location on ground station [0 0 0] (default) | 1-by-3 real-valued vector

MountingAngles — Orientation of sensor on ground station [0 0 0] (default) | 1-by-3 real-valued vector

HasElevation — Enable sensor to report target elevation true (default) | false

HasRangeRate — Enable sensor to report target range rate true (default) | false

FieldOfView — Field of view of sensor beam [60 20] (default) | 1-by-2 real-valued vector

RangeLimits — Minimum and maximum detection range of sensor [1e5 2e6] (default) | 1-by-2 nonnegative real-valued vector

RangeRateLimits — Minimum and maximum detection range rate of sensor [-1e4 1e4] (default) | 1-by-2 real-valued vector

DetectionProbability — Probability of detecting target inside coverage limits 0.9 (default) | scalar in the range (0,1]

AzimuthResolution — Azimuth resolution of sensor 1 (default) | positive scalar

RangeResolution — Range resolution of sensor 100 (default) | positive scalar

ElevationResolution — Elevation resolution of sensor 5 (default) | positive scalar

RangeRateResolution — Range rate resolution of sensor 10 (default) | positive scalar

FalseAlarmRate — False alarm report rate 1e-6 (default) | scalar in the range (0,1]

Terrain — Terrain data file to read string scalar | character vector

Object Functions

Examples

Create and Configure Ground-Based Radar Sensor Specification for Space Surveillance

More About

Data Format Required By Task-Oriented Tracker

Tips

Version History

See Also

Functions

Objects

Topics

`ReferenceFrame` — Reference frame for sensor data
`"NED"` (default) | `"ENU"` | `"ECEF"`

`MaxNumLooksPerUpdate` — Maximum number of looks per update
`30` (default) | `1` | positive integer

`MaxNumMeasurementsPerUpdate` — Maximum number of measurements per update
`10` (default) | positive integer

`GroundStationPosition` — Geodetic position of ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real vector

`GroundStationOrientation` — Orientation of ground station
`eye(3)` (default) | 3-by-3 rotation matrix

`MountingLocation` — Sensor location on ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real-valued vector

`MountingAngles` — Orientation of sensor on ground station
`[0 0 0]` (default) | 1-by-3 real-valued vector

`HasElevation` — Enable sensor to report target elevation
`true` (default) | `false`

`HasRangeRate` — Enable sensor to report target range rate
`true` (default) | `false`

`FieldOfView` — Field of view of sensor beam
`[60 20]` (default) | 1-by-2 real-valued vector

`RangeLimits` — Minimum and maximum detection range of sensor
`[1e5 2e6]` (default) | 1-by-2 nonnegative real-valued vector

`RangeRateLimits` — Minimum and maximum detection range rate of sensor
`[-1e4 1e4]` (default) | 1-by-2 real-valued vector

`DetectionProbability` — Probability of detecting target inside coverage limits
`0.9` (default) | scalar in the range (0,1]

`AzimuthResolution` — Azimuth resolution of sensor
`1` (default) | positive scalar

`RangeResolution` — Range resolution of sensor
`100` (default) | positive scalar

`ElevationResolution` — Elevation resolution of sensor
`5` (default) | positive scalar

`RangeRateResolution` — Range rate resolution of sensor
`10` (default) | positive scalar

`FalseAlarmRate` — False alarm report rate
`1e-6` (default) | scalar in the range (0,1]

`Terrain` — Terrain data file to read
string scalar | character vector