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ABSTRACT
A radio link between the ground and a satellite passes through the atmosphere of the Earth. In the atmosphere, two areas can impact the propagation of waves: the troposphere and the ionosphere. The troposphere refers to the low layers of the atmosphere where meteorological phenomena occur. These phenomena have a significant influence on the Earth-space propagation. Generally, this influence tends to increase with the frequency of the wave. The ionosphere is a region of the high atmosphere where compounds are partially ionized by solar radiation. This ionization phenomenon has also an impact on the propagation of waves. Reversely to what occurs in the troposphere, the ionospheric effects increase at low frequencies of below 1 GHz and decrease with frequency.
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Read the articleAUTHORS
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Laurent CASTANET: Research engineer - Office national d'études et de recherches aérospatiales (ONERA - French national aerospace research agency)
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Patrick LASSUDRIE-DUCHESNE: Research Director - École nationale supérieure des télécommunications de Bretagne
INTRODUCTION
A radio link between the ground and a satellite passes through the Earth's atmosphere. The Earth's atmosphere comprises two regions that can influence wave propagation: the troposphere and the ionosphere.
The troposphere refers to the lower layers of the atmosphere where meteorological phenomena occur. These have a significant influence on Earth-space propagation. As a general rule, this influence tends to increase with wave frequency.
The ionosphere is a region of the upper atmosphere where components are partially ionized by solar radiation. This ionization also influences wave propagation. Unlike the troposphere, ionospheric effects are predominant at low frequencies, below 1 GHz, and decrease with frequency.
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Propagation of radio waves through the atmosphere
Propagation through the troposphere
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Reference
Organization
International Communication Union – Radiocommunication sector (ITU-R) http://www.itu.int/ITU-R
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