SAR Manager Calculators
Probability, coverage, and effort calculators for search planning and management.
Formulas Reference
-Symbol Definitions
| Symbol | Name | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| A | Area | km² |
| C | Coverage | ratio |
| S | Track Spacing | m |
| T | Time Spent Searching | hours |
| V | Velocity (Speed of Search) | km/h |
| W | Effective Sweep Width (Rd) | m |
| Z | Area Effectively Swept | km² |
| TTL | Total Track Length (Total Effort) | km |
| POA | Probability of Area | % |
| Pden | Probability Density | %/km² |
| POD | Probability of Detection | % |
| PSR | Probable Success Rate | POS/Searcher Hour |
| POS | Probability of Success | % |
| POScum | Cumulative POS | % |
| OPOScum | Overall Cumulative POS | % |
| Rd | Range of Detection | m |
Key Formulas
Theoretical Search Area
Probability
Total Track Length
Area Swept & Coverage
Detection & Success
Area Calculator
-Circular Area from Travel Time
r = speed × time | A = πr²
Circular Area from Radius
A = π × r²
Triangle Area (Heron's Formula)
s = (a+b+c)/2 | A = √(s(s-a)(s-b)(s-c))
Rd (Range of Detection) and Effective Sweep Width Calculator
-Paces Conversion
Rd Test Walks (enter paces per leg)
| Leg | Test 1 (paces) | Test 1 (m) | Test 2 (paces) | Test 2 (m) | Test 3 (paces) | Test 3 (m) | Test 4 (paces) | Test 4 (m) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rd (avg, m) | - | - | - | - | ||||
| Overall Avg Rd (m) | - | |||||||
Effective Sweep Width W from Rd
W = Rd × visibility correction factor
M242 Ecoregion Reference (Marine Mountains, Mixed Forest, Summer)
| Object / Visibility | Effective Sweep Width (W) |
|---|---|
| Person-sized, White/Orange (High) | 36 m |
| Person-sized, Blue (Medium) | 32 m |
| Person-sized, Green (Low) | 17 m |
| Glove-sized Clue (High) | 8 m |
Mattson Consensus POA Calculator
-Rate the most likely region as 10 and all others in proportion to it. Calculates consensus POA, Pden, and PSR rankings.
Team Members
Region Ratings (0-10)
| Team Member |
|---|
Region Parameters
| Parameter |
|---|
| Area (km²) |
| Speed (km/hr) |
| Sweep Width (m) |
Coverage, Effort, Z, and POD Calculator
-Enter segment area, sweep width, and desired track spacing to calculate coverage and POD.
| Seg | Area A (km²) | Sweep W (m) | Spacing S (m) | Coverage C | TTL (km) | Z (km²) | POD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Enter segment area, sweep width, and desired coverage to calculate track spacing and POD.
| Seg | Area A (km²) | Sweep W (m) | Desired C | Spacing S (m) | TTL (km) | Z (km²) | POD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Total Effort (TTL) Calculator
-A. From Track Count
TTL = tracks × length
B. From Speed / Time
TTL = V × T × searchers
C. From Area / Spacing
TTL = (area(ha) / 100) × 1000 / spacing(m)
D. From Z and W
TTL = (Z × 1000) / W
Effort, Z, and Coverage Per Segment
-Segment Parameters
Searcher Track Lengths
Enter track length directly, OR velocity + time (track length will auto-calculate).
| Searcher | Velocity (km/h) | Time (hrs) | Track Length (km) |
|---|---|---|---|
| TTL (Total) | - | - | 0.0 km |
Z and Coverage by Visibility Level
| Visibility | W (m) | TTL (km) | Z (km²) | Coverage C | POD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High | 36 | - | - | - | - |
| Medium | 32 | - | - | - | - |
| Low | 17 | - | - | - | - |
| Clue | 8 | - | - | - | - |
Planning Sweep Search Calculator
-Segment Inputs
If "Number of Parallel Tracks" is left blank, it will be calculated from baseline and derived track spacing. Enter a number to override.
Results
Overall Cumulative POS Calculator
-Enter initial POA as decimal (e.g. 0.30 = 30%), then enter coverage C for each search round. POD and adjusted POA are calculated automatically.
OPOScum = sum of all POS values across all regions and all search rounds. The sum of final adjusted POA values should equal 1.0 as a check.