# Would Superman show up on radar?

**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-superman-show-up-on-radar/483905
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [January 31, 2009, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-superman-show-up-on-radar/483905 "2009-01-31T20:32:02Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Page:** 2

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### Author: ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)
#### Post date: [February 2, 2009, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-superman-show-up-on-radar/483905/21 "2009-02-02T07:11:35Z")

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> [@ivn1188](#):
>
> Define typical search radar? Most airport radars do not get skin paints, they just look for transponders. But in a general sense, radar is certainly able to detect things other than metal; radar altimeters reflect from ground features/water, weather radars look very closely at clouds.

I didn’t say that non-metallic objects would not reflect radar at all, just not well. Besides, you are comparing apples and oranges. Clouds and ground features are much larger than a person-sized object.

> [@ivn1188](#):
>
> …The Aegis system also has an incredibly powerful radar that would be more than capable of picking up a human sized radar return.

Probably true, but the Aegis system is a special case; it works both as a search radar and a fire control radar.

> [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](#):
>
> The radar on a luxury yacht I was on could pick up swimmers in the water around it.

But not at any significant range.

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