SLAR
Side-Looking Airborne Radar

The Side-Looking Airborne Radar (SLAR) is an airborne imaging system that points perpendicular to the flight direction. SLAR sends a beam of energy to the surface perpendicular to the flight path and detects the return signals to create radar images of the terrain. It usually operates in the X-band (8-12 GHz). SLAR can gather imagery regardless of weather or time of day and has been used for mapping geological features and cloud-covered regions because of its ability to penetrate clouds.