Special Section Guest Editorial: Target Search and Detection

Search and detection are two everyday jobs of many biological systems, performed almost innately, either consciously or subconsciously and necessary for survival. Search and target detection, in particular, are the first stages in visual observation tasks associated with military target acquisition, industrial inspection, traffic control, and many more applications. These tasks currently are often performed with the aid of an electro-optic viewing system. In these tasks, search is defined as the process by which an observer surveys his surroundings, and detection is the process of successfully declaring a desired target as such—more precise interpretations of these terms will be found in what follows and in the included papers.