Increasing the range scale on a radar display generally results in which outcome?

• A. A Larger Display Range but Fewer Contacts Shown
• B. A Greater Emphasis on Distant Targets
• C. Shorter Update Rate
• D. Higher Processing Load

Answer: (B)

Expanding the range scale on a radar display increases the portion of space that the screen represents, effectively widening the view outward. As more distant areas come into view, targets that are far away become more visible on the display, so distant targets are emphasized relative to closer ones. The update rate is governed by how often the radar completes a sweep, not by how far the display covers, so extending the range does not inherently shorten the update cycle. Likewise, while more distant targets can be seen, the change doesn’t automatically increase the processing load; it mainly changes what portion of the scene is shown and how prominently far targets appear. So, widening the range scale makes distant targets more noticeable on the screen.