The Potential of Precipitation Parameters Retrieval from LoS-MIMO Microwave Links

Commercial microwave links (CMLs) are used to transmit information between base station towers in cellular networks. Opportunistic remote sensing of rainfall, using the signal level measurements from CMLs, has proven to be highly accurate in rain rate estimation. As traditional CML link has single antenna and polarization setup, its capability of retrieving other precipitation parameters is limited. The latest microwave technology line-of-sight multiple-input multiple-output (LoS MIMO) are equipped with multiple transmitters and receivers to increase capacity. In a 2x2 LOS-MIMO system, each of the two antennas employs a different polarization. In this study, we investigate the potential of using LOS-MIMO microwave link to retrieve parameters related to rain drop size distribution based on measurement data.