Review of SHF and EHF slant path propagation measurements made near slough (UK)

Studies of the effects of the atmosphere on radiowave propagation relevant to the planning and operation of future satellite communication systems at frequencies above 10 GHz have been carried out at Slough for over ten years. Observational data, which relate mainly to attenuation by rain and cloud, are available within the band 11 to 110 GHz. With reference to systems performance, this paper reviews the results on atmospheric attenuation derived from single-site and space diversity experiments involving fixed-pointing radiometers, sun-tracker radiometers and test transmissions from the ATS-6, OTS and SIRIO satellites. The latter have also enabled information to be obtained on depolarisation by atmospheric constituents with particular reference to frequency reuse applications.