A Question about radar

HMCS · 08-21-07, 01:06 AM

I'm playing GWX, 90% realism, Oct. 1942.

I was assuming that the radar works in a similar way to asdic; meaning, it depends on the quality of the escort, sea state and range to target (sub).

At what point has everyone found that it is nigh impossible to track and approach a convoy?

My metox is warning me about radar emissions, but not sure if I have to submerge far ahead of the convoy and hope that it passes close enough for me to take a shot, or maybe I'm second guessing myself and worrying too much about being detected and not approaching as per usual (i.e. submerging about 10 nm ahead of the convoy's lead escort, diving and creeping in).

GoldenRivet · 08-21-07, 02:32 AM

your RWR picks up radar signals at a slightly longer range than radar is able to detect you.. the trick is to stay in that groove if that makes sense - impossible to do without map contact updates on though.

Radar after mid 1942ish to early 1943ish is pretty good at detecting something sticking out of the water approximately one meter high. Snorkels, periscopes... U-boats. :rotfl:

as someone who works radar regularly i can assure you that even present day radar systems can be fooled quite easily by meteorological conditions - anomolous propogation - terrain blockage of line of sight any number of things but ww2 era radar is a whole other animal.

WW2 radar scopes more or less gave a bearing and a range to a detected object, the larger the "spike" the larger the contact... a little difficult to differentiate erroneous signal reception when you are detecting a squadron of planes approaching the white cliffs of Dover... but when your at sea, the sea is for the most part a huge flat surface. except for the roughest sea conditions something like a periscope is fairly easy to detect. It was common practice back then that if you received a radar return at sea... better to send at least one DD to check it out.

as for the AI in sh3... i believe their radar can detect anything that breaks the surface plane for XX numebr of seconds or above a given height. i could be completely wrong here... others would know more, but i think for the most part the sim has the radar use pretty much right from a historical stand point.

HMCS · 08-21-07, 09:43 AM

Thank you for that. Pretty much what I expected.

08-21-07, 01:06 AM	#1
HMCS Sonar Guy Join Date: May 2005 Location: Squaresville, daddy-O. Posts: 394 Downloads: 186 Uploads: 0	A Question about radar I'm playing GWX, 90% realism, Oct. 1942. I was assuming that the radar works in a similar way to asdic; meaning, it depends on the quality of the escort, sea state and range to target (sub). At what point has everyone found that it is nigh impossible to track and approach a convoy? My metox is warning me about radar emissions, but not sure if I have to submerge far ahead of the convoy and hope that it passes close enough for me to take a shot, or maybe I'm second guessing myself and worrying too much about being detected and not approaching as per usual (i.e. submerging about 10 nm ahead of the convoy's lead escort, diving and creeping in). __________________ "Turning enemy ships into marine habitat since 1986!" Mods Loaded:TMO 2.2, RSRDC, MaxOptics, Strategic Map Symbols, Stop The Shouting OR: RFB, RSRDC, Maxoptics, SCAF, Strategic Map Symbols and the sanity-saving "stop the shouting".

08-21-07, 02:32 AM	#2
GoldenRivet Subsim Aviator Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Texas Posts: 8,726 Downloads: 146 Uploads: 0	your RWR picks up radar signals at a slightly longer range than radar is able to detect you.. the trick is to stay in that groove if that makes sense - impossible to do without map contact updates on though. Radar after mid 1942ish to early 1943ish is pretty good at detecting something sticking out of the water approximately one meter high. Snorkels, periscopes... U-boats. :rotfl: as someone who works radar regularly i can assure you that even present day radar systems can be fooled quite easily by meteorological conditions - anomolous propogation - terrain blockage of line of sight any number of things but ww2 era radar is a whole other animal. WW2 radar scopes more or less gave a bearing and a range to a detected object, the larger the "spike" the larger the contact... a little difficult to differentiate erroneous signal reception when you are detecting a squadron of planes approaching the white cliffs of Dover... but when your at sea, the sea is for the most part a huge flat surface. except for the roughest sea conditions something like a periscope is fairly easy to detect. It was common practice back then that if you received a radar return at sea... better to send at least one DD to check it out. as for the AI in sh3... i believe their radar can detect anything that breaks the surface plane for XX numebr of seconds or above a given height. i could be completely wrong here... others would know more, but i think for the most part the sim has the radar use pretty much right from a historical stand point. __________________

08-21-07, 09:43 AM	#3
HMCS Sonar Guy Join Date: May 2005 Location: Squaresville, daddy-O. Posts: 394 Downloads: 186 Uploads: 0	Thank you for that. Pretty much what I expected. __________________ "Turning enemy ships into marine habitat since 1986!" Mods Loaded:TMO 2.2, RSRDC, MaxOptics, Strategic Map Symbols, Stop The Shouting OR: RFB, RSRDC, Maxoptics, SCAF, Strategic Map Symbols and the sanity-saving "stop the shouting".