Measurements of LF and MF Radio Propagation over Irregular, Inhomogeneous Terrain

William A. Kissick, Eldon J. Haakinson, and Garth Hill Stonehocker

Abstract: Measurements of radio propagation path loss and local ground conductivity were made over four paths in the 100 to 2000 kHz band. The paths were of lengths up to 50 km and were chosen to represent both extreme and typical topography and conductivity conditions for the U.S. The measurements were made near Canyonlands National Park in Utah, at Highland Range and Dry Lake Valley in Nevada, over the Santa Rita Range in Arizona, and across San Francisco Bay in California. One objective of gathering the LF–MF propagation data was to compare the measurement results with propagation predictions made by a computer program which uses the path profile, ground conductivity, and frequency as prediction parameters. The results of the predictions and the comparisons with these measured data are discussed in a separate report. Another objective of the measurement project was to describe the measurement technique and procedure in sufficient detail so that similar measurements could be made by others. This report describes the propagation and ground conductivity measurement techniques, site selection, and test frequency selection, and gives the measured results for the test paths.

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