Improving Rain Attenuation Estimation: Mod- Elling of Effective Path Length Using Ku- Band Measurements at a Tropical Location

Rain attenuation is an important aspect of signal propagation above 10GHz frequency. The attenuation time series generation from point rain rate measurement is crucial due to unavailability of actual signal measurements. In this paper, a simple and realistic approach has been demonstrated for better estimation of rain attenuation using Ku-band signal propagation data and ground rain rate measurements at Kolkata, India. The ITU-R model of rain attenuation has been modified by incorporating an effective slant path model. The effective slant path has been estimated and modelled in terms of a power-law relationship of rain rate data of 2007–2008. The methodology has been validated with the measured data of 2006. Comparison with ITU-R and SAM clearly demonstrates the improved predictability of the proposed model at the present tropical location.