Harold T. Dougherty

Abstract: After a brief description of the significance of the radio refractive index and its variation in the lower troposphere, a catalog of fading mechanisms is presented. Attention is directed to the supporting refractive index structure, the characteristics of the fading signal, and the available remedies. The phenomena of multipath fading are described, and the theoretical amplitude distributions are presented. Diversity reception (frequency or space) is outlined for reducing the fading due to multipath. Specific expressions are given for determining the frequency or space separations. Successful remedies for microwave fading that are keyed to specific fading mechanisms also constitute a means of measuring the characteristics of the prevailing meteorological conditions. Specific expressions are given to accomplish this for the multipath and diffraction fading mechanisms.

Keywords: multipath; fading; microwave; ducting; diffraction fading; radio refractive index; tropospheric propagation

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