Low angle signal fading at 38 GHz in the High Arctic

In 1984 a microwave propagation experiment was conducted at
83\deg
N latitude in Alert, Canada, to study the characteristics of low angle fading at a frequency of 38 GHz. By monitoring the continuous wave (CW) signal transmitted from the orbiting LES-8 satellite, propagation data were gathered over a range of elevation angles from
1\deg
to
21\deg
. A total of three sets of measurments were made in the spring, summer, and winter. These allowed comparisons to be made of the seasonal characteristics of low angle fading in the arctic. The experimental data were examined with respect to the atmospheric conditions observed at Alert. The results presented include the variation of the median signal level with the elevation angle, cumulative distributions of the received signal level and fade rate statistics. The amount of signal fading increased rapidly as the elevation angle decreased. Fading was most severe in the summer which also had the highest fade rates. Very little fading was observed in the winter.