Under poor weather conditions, how do EO/IR and radar sensors complement each other?

• A. Radar always provides superior data; EO/IR offers no helpful cues in poor weather.
• B. EO/IR can provide visual cues when radar is degraded; radar maintains tracks at longer ranges; fusion improves reliability.
• C. EO/IR and radar are redundant; one can replace the other.
• D. EO/IR is only useful for imaging, not tracking.

Answer: (B)

The idea here is using complementary sensing and sensor fusion to stay reliable when visibility is poor. Radar shines at long ranges and can maintain tracks even when visual cues are hard to see, so it keeps a continuous track and provides range and speed information. EO/IR, while affected by weather and reduced visibility, can still offer visual cues and identification when radar data is degraded, giving you a visual confirmation and cues to where targets are. When you fuse the two, you combine these strengths: you keep long-range tracking from radar, you get helpful visual context from EO/IR, and the fusion makes the overall picture more reliable by cross-validating detections and reducing ambiguity. This is why the paired use is superior in poor weather.