Ship sensors
Ship sensors are used to acquire a target lock on an enemy ship. The strength of a ship's sensors can be modified by a variety of Modules.
Types of Sensors
There are 4 types of ship sensors, based on the race of the ship. They are:
- Gravimetric sensors (used by Caldari)
- Magnetometric sensors (used by Gallente)
- LADAR sensors (used by Minmatar)
- RADAR sensors (used by Amarr)
This can be important to know when using Electronic Counter Measures.
Sensor Strength
Every ship has a sensor strength attribute. Larger ships generally have higher sensor strength than small ships. This attribute is used when calculating the chance of being jammed by an Electronic Counter Measure module. Knowing the type of sensors used by an opponent can help in determining which type of ECM jamming device to use.
Sensor strength can be improved using Electronic Counter, Counter Measures or Sensor Backup Arrays.
Scan Resolution
Every ship has a scan resolution attribute. This determines how quickly the ship can lock on to a particular target. A higher scan resolution means that the ship's sensors can target a ship faster. Larger ships tend to have a lower scan resolution, so it takes them longer to target other ships. The formula for determining the targeting time is:
Targeting time = 10000 ÷ Scan resolution × arcsinh (Signature Radius of the target)
For example, a Frigate can target a Battleship-sized ship in under a second, but a battleship will spend approximately 20 seconds targeting a frigate-sized ship. A ship's scan resolution can be increased by activating Sensor Boosters or Signal Amplifiers, and the signature radius of a ship can be increased by using a target painter on it.
