A New Model for Estimating Troposcatter Loss and Delays Based on Ray-Tracing and Beam Splitting With ERA5

The atmospheric environment is one of the critical factors affecting troposcatter transmission loss and propagation delay. This article proposes a new estimation model that can accurately calculate troposcatter transmission loss and propagation delay with a numerical weather model (NWM). The ERA5 reanalysis data as the NWM are applied to construct the new model. The 3-D ray-tracing and beam splitting are used to calculate propagation paths and delays. Compared with the existing methods, the new model thoroughly considered the bending and delaying effects of the atmospheric environment on electromagnetic waves, resulting in more accurate estimates. The transmission loss calculation capability of the new model is compared with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) model and the terrestrial trans-horizon propagation loss data banks. The propagation delay calculation capability is compared with the Bello model. These comparison results show that the new model sufficiently reflects the meteorological environment’s influence on transmission loss and propagation delay. Finally, the daily variation characteristics of losses and delays are analyzed using the new model and further validate the model performance.