PE and Terrain Modeling

This chapter explains how irregular terrain modeling can be implemented in the PE via several different mathematical approaches. The staircase approximation of the range dependent terrain profile is the best and easiest in order to handle DBC since neither analytical terrain function nor slope values are required. It emphasizes only on the requirement of the terrain height at each range step. Surface‐wave propagation along multi‐mixed propagation paths including irregular terrain profiles has long been a challenging wave propagation prediction problem. A highly attractive and effective model for the prediction of EM wave propagation effects above Earth's surface is the SSPE method. The PE model is a one‐way, forward propagation problem, which can be numerically discretized and solved via step‐by‐step iterative marching representations from source to receiver, using the finite‐difference, FEM, or MoM approaches as well as DFT algorithms.