Eli5: Radar are built to spin around, send out, and capture a signal to create a 360 degree image of the surrounding area that regularly updates.
One would think that you could build a stationary antenna that electronically pulses and limits the area it is searching to do the same thing, removing the complication of the moving parts.
Why isn’t this the norm? And is it even possible?
In: Engineering
They don’t. Not if they’re phased array radars. As an example, look at the superstructure of an Arleigh Burke destroyer. You’ll notice four rectangles with clipped corners on it at the 1:30, 4:30, 7:30, and 10:30 positions. These four panels are the AN/SPY-1 radar, capable of drawing a hemisphere of coverage around the carrying ship from sea to zenith.
Some PARs need to spin due to limited slew angles off the array face to obtain 360° coverage.
Phased array radars are becoming the norm, but replace mechanical complexity with electronic and computing complexity. Benefits include being able to scan a volume nearly instantly, identify anything in it, and maintain radar tracks on all objects deemed worthy of further attention, while simultaneously guiding rear-illuminated ordnance.
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