Technical analysis of a proposed ship-to-ship chemical laser transmission experiment

Equipment and procedures for performing a DF laser ship-to-ship transmission experiment are described. A low-power, CW DF laser, a Fourier Transform Spectrometer, and a 32 inch diameter optical tracking system with 50 microradian resolution will be installed aboard the aircraft carrier USS LEXINGTON. A 60 inch-diameter tracking receiver and aerosol and meteorological equipment will be installed aboard an escort ship. Precise absolute transmittance measurements using the laser source, and high resolution infrared spectral measurements using the spectrometer, will be performed between the two ships at separations from 1 to 5 kilometers. The expected precision of the derived data is discussed. The contribution of the experiment results toward improving DF laser propagation model-validation is analysed in great detail. Five appendices contain discussions of tracker and optical engineering details and a discussion proposing related LIDAR measurements. Successful completion of the project, we conclude, will provide the Navy and HEL community with a dual large aperture tracking system for performing significant atmospheric transmission measurements using a ship-based, combustion-driven DF laser.