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plan position indicator

American  

noun

  1. a radarscope on which an object reflecting radar waves shows its bearing and distance from the radar detector by causing a spot of light to appear on a screen that represents a map of the area around the detector. PPI

Etymology

Origin of plan position indicator

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

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The most common type, the "Plan Position Indicator," is a circular dial with an electronic beam like a minute hand, which sweeps around the dial in synchronization with the scanning antenna, painting in its fluorescent wake a picture of what radar sees.

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.