© 2008 Museum of Communication

Radar is an electronic system, used to locate objects beyond the range of vision, and to determine their distance by projecting radio waves against them. The term radar is derived from the phrase “radio detection and ranging”, and this name was used by Allied forces during World War II for a variety of devices concerned with radio detection and position finding. Such devices not only indicate the presence and range of a distant object, called the target, but also determine its position in space, its size and shape, and its velocity and direction of motion. Although originally developed as an instrument of war, radar today is used extensively in many peacetime pursuits, such as navigation, controlling air traffic, detecting weather patterns, and tracking spacecraft.