Harbin Osteen wrote:

Though you might not see targets farther, with a larger antenna you would
have a better resolution, and that would be a good thing, don't you think?

Basically it boils down to: The higher the frequency of the beam, the
higher the frequency of the PRF (Pulse Repetition Frequency) and the
shorter your pulse length the better your resolution. Antenna size only
affects the signal strength the receiver sees, for the most part. Which
is assuming it's built for the proper frequency.

I was on an ancient AD (Destroyer Tender, built during WWII, USS
Arcadia) and had a helluva discussion with a WO who was doing the CIC
thing when we entered the Chesapeake Bay and why the old radar wouldn't
enable me to determine where the bogey I was tracking went into and out
of a glob of traffic. Also he was sure I should be able to pickup
dolphins since the radar beam went over the edge of the ship, made a 90
degree down angle turn, another 90 degree angle turn at the surface, and
shot out over the surface. To was repeated for the echo. This on a
ship where the repeater would drop out because the AC volts supplied
dropped below 90.

Bill, who was a ETN2 in the old days and has forgotten most of this kind
of stuff.