The development of radar, which dates back to as early as the 1880s, utilizes radio, microwave, or infrared frequencies of electromagnetic radiation to determine the distance, speed, and location of moving or fixed objects. Electromagnetic radiation is a form of electric and/or magnetic energy transmitted in the form of waves that is characterized by its frequency or wavelength. Doppler radar and subsequently pulse-Doppler radar were modern technological advances in radar technology that makes use of the Doppler Effect to calculate the speed of moving objects at a distance.
Modern radar guns, also known as speed guns, use this wave property by transmitting a small beam of known frequency, then receiving the same signal back after it bounces off the targeted object. Depending on whether the object is moving toward or away from the gun, the frequency of the signal is different from the original signal. From that difference, the radar speed gun can calculate the object’s speed on successive readings. Think of it this way: you are trapped in a room where one of the walls has just started to move towards you. It’s pitch-black. You can’t see a thing. All you have in your hands is a soccer ball. If you throw the soccer ball at the wall that’s moving towards you, you can tell how close the wall is by how long it takes for the ball to rebound off the wall and come back to you.
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