Developed originally by Ericsson Microwave Systems (now part of Saab Electronic Defence Systems’ business area), the Carabas foliage penetration (FOPEN) radar has been around for some time, but it has been improved significantly so it can see under the ground, and has been miniaturized so it can be carried by unmanned air vehicles (UAVs).
Carabas (coherent all radio band sensing) began trials in the early 1990s and was initially developed as a low-band (20 to 90 MHz) VHF synthetic-aperture radar that could see manmade objects, such as vehicles, through foliage and manmade camouflage. In its original guise the radar’s antennas were mounted in two inflatable fairings, each around 18 feet long, that projected aft from a Rockwell Sabreliner test bed aircraft. Trials with the system, and subsequent developments, showed significant promise and it has been proposed as a strategic system for use with large UAVs or business jet platforms.
