Ball Aerospace created the Mk 20 All-Light-Level Marine Camera (ALLMC) as an outgrowth of the Seasparrow Low-light Camera. It offers cost-effective, around-the-clock imaging for search, surveillance, target identification, fire control, and navigation at sea in all light conditions.

With more than 30 years of naval camera expertise, Ball Aerospace developed the Seasparrow and Mk 20 Cameras specifically for military use. Employing a charge couple device sensor, the ALLMC provides higher resolution images, better fog and haze prevention, and a 75-fold improvement in reliability over the tube-based sensors that were used in older cameras.

The Mk 20 camera is a component of the shipboard MK-86 Gunfire Control System (GFCS) and is used 24/7 for:

• Search 
• Surveillence
• Target identification 
• Fire control 
• Navigational guidance

The GFCS conducts direct firing attacks against surface radar and optically tracked targets, as well as indirect firing during Naval Gun Fire Support (NGFS).

Technical characteristics include:

• 24-power zoom lens 
• Intensified camera operates day and night for 24/7 operations 
• Fully qualified for the naval environment 
• Ball Aerospace’s CCD sensor is the heart of the Mk 20 camera in the GFCS 
• Camera and its zoom lens are protected by a sealed and pressured marine housing 
• Delivers a 75-fold increase in reliability over tube-based sensors