Reduction of radar image artifacts caused by target inlets

The standard radar weak-scatterer model is inappropriate to targets with inlets and cavities and range-resolved images created using this model often display artifacts associated with these structures. Since inlets and cavities (typically) make a strong contribution to the radar field scattered from aircraft targets, these artifacts can confound the image interpretation process. Many of the more complete and accurate scattering models require extensive knowledge about the cavity/inlet shape and size and, moreover, are numerically intensive-features that make them unsuitable for many imaging applications. We examine an older (first-order) model based on a weak-scattering modal expansion of the structure which appears to be well suited to radar imaging.