Review of prediction methods for low-elevation aerospace systems and new achievements

Unmanned Airborne Vehicles (UAV) datalinks are among the most critical technologies in a large number of future UAV applications. The main characteristics of Line Of Sight (LOS) datalinks for UAV are medium and long range paths, and low elevation angle, whereas the frequency may range from VHF and UHF up to Ku and Ka bands. As far as available statistical prediction models are concerned, there is a lack of accurate and validated models for this type of low-elevation long-range configuration, for gas, cloud, and rain attenuation, as well as scintillation and multipath fading. The paper will review the most recent developments that have been performed to improve this situation, and collaborative activity conducted and planned in the framework of COST 0802 Action.

[1]  L. Luini,et al.  A physically based methodology for the evaluation of the rain attenuation on terrestrial radio links , 2010, Proceedings of the Fourth European Conference on Antennas and Propagation.

[2]  Laurent Castanet,et al.  HYCELL—A new hybrid model of the rain horizontal distribution for propagation studies: 2. Statistical modeling of the rain rate field , 2003 .

[3]  David V. Rogers Clear-air transmission impairments at low path elevation angles , 2010, Proceedings of the Fourth European Conference on Antennas and Propagation.

[4]  Laurent Castanet,et al.  HYCELL—A new hybrid model of the rain horizontal distribution for propagation studies: 1. Modeling of the rain cell , 2003 .

[5]  Carlo Capsoni,et al.  MultiEXCELL: A new rainfall model for the analysis of the millimetre wave propagation through the atmosphere , 2009, 2009 3rd European Conference on Antennas and Propagation.

[6]  Pierre Bouchard Simplified method for estimating gaseous absorption at low elevation angles along earth-space paths , 2010, 2010 14th International Symposium on Antenna Technology and Applied Electromagnetics & the American Electromagnetics Conference.

[7]  Kourogiorgas Charilaos,et al.  Use of the HYCELL model for predicting rain attenuation on UAS low elevation datalinks , 2010, Proceedings of the Fourth European Conference on Antennas and Propagation.