The geometrical optics approach to atmospheric propagation models

An accurate model for the propagation of infrared and optical frequencies through the atmosphere is a requirement for a number of important communications and surveillance systems. These systems operate over long nearly-horizontal paths that are close to the land or sea surface. There can be strong heat and mass flux gradients near the surface which make accurate transmission predictions difficult. The development and utility of geometrical optics, or ray-trace, methods for the EOSTAR and IRWarp models will be addressed. Both models are driven by bulk meteorological models to provide the environmental fields that can subsequently be used to define the refractivity field. The ray-trace algorithm uses the refractivity field to generate a transfer map. The transfer map provides precise information concerning the number, location, and orientation of the images of a source point. One application of this information is the geometric gain, or the refractive propagation factor, which is an output consisting of a vertical signal intensity profile at a given range. A second application is a passive ranging capability for sub-refractive conditions. The ranging calculation uses the existence of an inferior mirage image to deduce the target range and height.