Do military radars pick up anything besides metals?

Question

As far as a radar picking up an incoming airplane can that specific radar pick up anything else like incoming clouds etc. and if not what type of metals can it and can not pick up.

Answer 1

Yes, one can't see "clouds" per se, but one can certainly see heavy concentrations of water, i.e. thunderstorms.  The basic premise behind weather radar.  Also, the ground itself returns radar energy, as do man-made structures like buildings.  In fact this latter capability is the basis of ground-mapping radar.  

All substances whether natural or man-made have differing levels of reflectivity.  The design range, and sensitivity of the receiver in question really determines what one will pick up.

Answer 2

certain radars do not pick up wood.

I'm sure because Canada's anti submarine maritime patrol aircraft of the 50s had a air surface radar housed in a wooden dome under the nose.

radar signals will bounce off water droplets in the clouds and be refracted everywhere so, the radar screen will present little faint signals or nothing at all.

I don't know which, but certain radars do not pick up fiberglass either since some radar domes are made of fiberglass and other composite materials.

Answer 3

Looks like we have a troll here. Some thumbs down given for perfectly good answers.

The answer to your question is, yes radars do detect non metals. Depending on the operating modes and frequencies, some of these could be detected. Natural objects such as ground, sea, water precipitation (such as rain, snow or hail), sand storms, animals, birds, man-made objects such as buildings and towers.

Answer 4

RADAR is not a metal detector...not even a little.

Answer 5

If a RF signal can bounce off of it, then the radar will pick it up.

A cloud allows very little, if any, RF signals bounce back, it would should up at something extremely small, which I doubt the scope would even register.