We describe a computer simulation of atmospheric and target effects on the accuracy of range measurements using pulsed laser radars (ladar) with PIN or avalanche photodiodes for direct detection. The computer simulation produces simulated range images as a function of a wide variety of environmental, target, and sensor parameters for ladar with range accuracies smaller than the pulse width. The simulation allows arbitrary target geometries, and simulates speckle, turbulence, and near-and

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... ld effects. We compare simulation results to actual range error data collected in field tests. ii