An HF oversea ground-wave path loss experiment

The standard curves used to predict HF ground-wave propagation losses over sea have been developed using the assumption that the sea surface is smooth. In reality this is rarely the case. For the case of a rough sea surface, there exists the theory of Barrick (1971) which enables the additional losses due to the roughness to be calculated. Until now, this theory had not been satisfactorily validated. Consequently, an experiment has been conducted with the following two aims: to validate Barrick´s path loss theory and thus increase confidence in computer models and predictions of HF system performance; and to determine to what extent routinely available environmental data can be used to predict path loss