Scintillation (radar)
{{Other uses|Scintillation (disambiguation)}}
Scintillation is a fluctuation in the amplitude of a target on a radar display. It is closely related to target glint, or wander, an apparent displacement of the target from its mean position. This effect can be caused by a shift of the effective reflection point on the target, but has other causes as well. The fluctuations can be slow (scan-to-scan) or rapid (pulse-to-pulse).{{cite journal |last1=Dunn |first1=J.H. |last2=Howard |first2=D.D. |title=RADAR Target Amplitude, Angle, and Doppler Scintillation from Analysis of the Echo Signal Propagating in Space |journal=IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques |date=September 1968 |volume=16 |issue=9 |pages=715–728 |doi=10.1109/TMTT.1968.1126776|bibcode=1968ITMTT..16..715D }}
It appears especially at seaside level.
Scintillation and glint are actually two manifestations of the same phenomenon and are most properly linked to one another in target modeling.{{cite book
| last = Skolnik
| first = Merrill I.
| year = 1990
| title = Radar Handbook
| edition = 2nd
| publisher = McGraw-Hill
| isbn = 0-07-057913-X
| last = Edde
| first = Byron
| year = 1992
| title = Radar: Principles, Technology, Applications
| publisher = Prentice Hall
| isbn = 0-13-752346-7
}}