Full Spectrum Weather Effects for 3-Dimensional Visualizations
The Engineering Physics Department’s Center for Directed Energy (AFIT CDE) is currently collaborating with the AFLCMC’s SIMAF division to develop an enhanced Eaagles simulation to improve overall Optical Kill Chain (OKC) simulations. Enhancing the Eaagles simulation means providing much better physically-based atmospheric characterizations, effects, and rendering with AFIT CDE’s Laser Environmental Effects Definition and Reference (LEEDR) model output. The OKC simulations will allow for visually stunning, and realistic-looking visible-spectrum images—like those in computer games—to accurately translate to propagation and atmospheric effects outside of the visible spectrum. Thus clouds, precipitation, and aerosol haze effects shown as people see them will be captured at wavelengths for any electro-optical infrared sensor or microwave/radio frequency tracking/illumination system. For the initial “weather cubes” for the enhanced OKC simulations, a 360 km x 360 km x 30 km volume is characterized for seven different day and night scenarios for eleven wavelengths ranging from the near-infrared to the microwave. The clear, dry to humid, cloudy and raining scenarios are all based on actual conditions that have occurred in a volume centered on Laredo, Texas. To create the thermodynamic conditions specified in the different scenarios, CDE collaborated with the AFLCMC’s weather group and later added microphysical and optical properties characterizations for the clouds, rain, and aerosols from LEEDR.
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Figure 1: Example weather cube for 3 cm propagation
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