History of radar

The development of radio-based systems that detect and locate objects by transmitting signals and analyzing their reflections, from early experiments to modern uses.

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Heinrich Hertz: A German physicist whose experiments demonstrated the existence and behavior of electromagnetic waves. His demonstrations that radio waves reflect from objects made radio detection experimentally plausible.
Pulse radar: A radar method that sends short bursts of radio energy and measures returning echoes. Pulsed transmission enabled distance measurement and became central to early warning radar.
Weather radar: A radar system that detects precipitation and estimates its location, intensity, and movement. Postwar radar networks adapted detection technology to monitor storms and precipitation.
Robert Page: An American physicist who helped develop pulse radar at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory. His 1930s work established an important U.S. path toward operational radar.
Battle of the Atlantic: The prolonged World War II campaign to control Atlantic sea routes between the Allies and Axis powers. Shipborne radar helped Allied forces find submarines and defend convoys.
Christian Hülsmeyer: A German inventor who patented an early radio-based device for detecting ships in 1904. His telemobiloscope was an early practical proposal for detecting obstacles with reflected radio waves.
Cavity magnetron: A vacuum tube that generates high-power microwave signals using resonant cavities and a magnetic field. Its compact, powerful microwave output transformed radar performance during World War II.
Air traffic control radar: Radar systems used to locate aircraft and support their safe separation and movement through airspace. Civil aviation adopted radar for surveillance as air travel expanded after World War II.
A. P. Rowe: A British physicist and administrator who directed the secret research program that developed British radar. He organized the Air Ministry effort that advanced radar from experiments to deployment.
Electronic warfare: Military action that uses or targets the electromagnetic spectrum to detect, disrupt, or deceive adversaries. Radar’s military value drove jamming, deception, and countermeasure techniques.