Turbo FT Helicopter Test
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A high speed imaging airborne instrument was successfully tested in a helicopter in
the Summer of 2002. The application was remote sensing of chemical plumes at 1000
feet altitude, about 30 degree downlook angle. The test was in desert
conditions, with all runs made at night. A 16 element MCT array was used for
this. The instrument ran at 100 scans per second. Chemical signatures were
detected using on-board processing to find the cloud and track it. A ground
based Turbo imaging system was also present at the test, at 3 km distance. This
system used our new 6" telescope to match the expected cloud size at 3 Km.
Further airborne testing was completed from a helicopter platform in July of 2003, including successful airborne detection of gaseous simulants at a stand-off distance of over one kilometer.
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