Design of an Infrared Camera Based Aircraft Dectection System for Laser Guide Star Installations

Abstract

For laser guide star installations above a few watts in average power, the irradiance of the beam exceeds the ANSI1 standards for eye safety and an aircraft detection system is required to insure that pilots or passengers are not blinded. Even for powers lower than this level, numerous incidents of temporary flash blindness have been observed2 and pose a threat to the safety of aircraft. LLNL has deployed two laser guide star systems3,4 and has obtained permits from the Federal Aviation Association which insure safe operation of these lasers. These aircraft detection systems use a combination of a rotating search radar, a narrow angle, boresight radar and visual observers to provide a triple layer of detection, each with its own access to the laser safety shutter.