Optimizing resolution efficiency for long-range EOIR multispectral imaging sensors

As airborne EOIR imaging systems strive to achieve high-NIIRS full motion video (FMV) from longer and longer standoff ranges, the challenges behind conceptualizing, designing, and fielding such systems grows significantly. We present a heuristic framework for dissecting the "goodness" of an FMV multispectral sensor and look at the various components behind what makes a high-resolution sensor. Combining spatial, temporal, spectral, and "signal" resolution with system footprint size/weight/power (SWaP) metrics allows deterministic tradeoffs between optical systems as well as system architectures. We present example trade studies of optical architectures from disparate application fields in various SWaP-constrained environments for long-range imaging and evaluating how system parameters are intrinsically linked.