Colonial Pact DMAESA Radar System

The DMAESA type or Dual Mode Active Electronically Scanned Array is the designation for a wide variety of active phased array radar systems used in all manner of Colonial Pact technology; from the humble vehicle mounted system to kilometer sized installation arrays they are found on virtually every platform being used in some manner. The system operates like a conventional active phased array including all of its various operating modes, however if needed it can also transmit sub-space manipulated radiowaves at faster than light velocites. This 'doping' process allows these altered waves to operate much like conventional radar emissions only at FTL velocities eliminating the issue of 'light lag' within the radar system's operational range. Due to the nature of phased arrays being hundreds, thousands, or even millions of individual arrays, each being able to operate individually. The system can operate in both conventional and sub-space mode simultaneously. The Colonial Pact utilizes these systems in all manner of applications and scales, being a standard fixture on vessels and lighter starships.

The DMAESA systems have a variety of features and capabilities as both active and passive sensor systems, the most important of which are listed and described below.

• Low Probability of Intercept
  • Perhaps its greatest advantage as an active sensor system is the fact that each individual radar element is capable of transmitting and receiving on its own set of frequencies. This allows the system to operate at high power levels but spread the energy of the beam across multiple frequency ranges, thus allowing the system to operate at a high transmission levels while still making its emissions difficult to pick out from the background noise of space.
• High Jamming Resistance
  • Due to the ability of the various transmitters to shift frequency with a simple electronic command the prospect of jamming a DMAESA system is daunting. Often shifting between a preset group of frequency ranges and shifting between them thousands of times a second it would require a 'blanket' jamming system broadcasting across a huge area of the spectrum. Not only would the power of the jamming system be reduced due to this spread, it would also open the platform employing it to various passive threats, such as home on jam missiles. Additionally the systems its targeting can merely detect the jamming and shift to frequencies it's not covering rendering the effort moot.
• Independent Radar Elements
  • Rather then being one large single transmitter/receiver array your standard DMAESA is in fact numerous individual radar elements, all independent, and all capable of operating on their own. Not only does this reduce the chance of failure, with an individual unit going down not shutting down the entire array. It also allows the system to operate multiple beams, operate across many different frequencies simultaneously, and operate in both FTL and conventional modes at the same time.
• Sub-Space 'Doping'
  • Perhaps the most unconventional aspect of the system is an interesting manipulation of the outgoing microwave radiation, changing it into a faster then light waveform which acts much like the conventional microwaves emitted during conventional operating modes. Effectively it dramatically increases the range of the DMAESA system, moving the shroud of light lag far beyond what a regular radar system can accomplish. The exact performance of this subspace doping depends on the size of the system and the amount of power it is capable of transmitting.
• Electronic Intelligence
  • While the DMAESA is a powerful active sensor system the same features that allow it to perform in this manner also make it quite the 'listening' tool for less direct means of information gathering. With each individual radar element capable of monitoring its own group of frequencies a platform operating a DMAESA array is more then capable of acting as a powerful ELINT tool monitoring both FTL and STL transmissions in any given area. This same capability can also be used as an active warning receiver, with elements mounted on a operating platform tuned to commonly used targeting frequencies.