Summary
Calculated values of the gaseous atmospheric absorption are presented for the frequency range 100 to 50,000 Mc at elevations above ground up to at least 130,000 feet, for average conditions during February and August at Bismarck, N. D. and Washington, D. C. Total radio path absorptionsare presented for tropospheric forward scatter communication links for distances of 100, 300 and 1000 miles. The total path absorptions were calculated by summing the absorption contributed by each portion of the atmosphere traversed by a radio ray passing from a 60 foot parabolic antenna resting on the ground to the scattering center and then to a similar receiving antenna. A correlation of total path absorption with the surface value of absolute humidity is developed, thus providing estimates of the range of absorption values in different geographic areas. Maps of average absolute humidity for the world are presented. Previous work on rain absorption is then combined with the present study to provide estimates of the radio power loss due to absorption expected to be exceeded 1 per cent of the time.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
H. E. Bussey,Microwave attenuation statistics estimated from rainfall and water vapor statistics, Proc. IRE, Vol. 38, No. 7, pp. 781–785, July 1950.
D. Davidson &A. Pote,Designing over-horizon communication links, Electronics, Vol. 28, pp. 126–131, December, 1955.
J. H. Van Vleck,The relation between absorption and disperison, Chapter 8, Propagation of Short Radio Waves, Vol. 13 of Radiation. Laboratory Series, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1951.
G. Birnbaum &A. A. Mabyott,Microwave, absorption in compressed oxygen, Physical Review, Vol. 99, p. 1886, September 15, 1955.
J. O. Artman &J. P. Gordon,Absorption of microwaves by oxygen in the millimeter wavelength region, Physical Review, Vol. 96, No. 5, pp. 1237–1245, December, 1954.
J. O. Artman,Absorption of microwaves by oxygen in the millimeter wavelength region, Columbia Radiation Ľaboratory, June 1, 1953.
B. Ratner,Upper air average values of temperature, pressure, and relative humidity over the United States and Alaska, U. S. Weather Bureau, May, 1945.
F. L. Whipple,Results of rocket and meteor research Bull. A.M.S., Vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 13–25, January, 1952.
K. A. Norton, P. L. Rice, H. B. Janes &A. P. Barsis,The rate of fading in propagation through a turbulent atmosphere, Proc. IRE, Vol. 43, No. 10, pp. 1341–1353, October, 1955.
F. Villars &V. F. Weisskopf,On the scattering of radio waves by turbulent fluctuations in the atmosphere, Proc. IRE, Vol. 43, No. 10, pp. 1232–1239, October, 1955.
K. A. Norton, P. L. Rice &L. E. Vogler,The use of angular distance in estimating transmission loss and fading range for propagation through a turbulent atmosphere over irregular terrain, Proc. IRE, Vol. 43, No. 10, pp. 1488–1526, October, 1955.
B. R. Bean,The geographical and height distribution of the gradient of the refractive index, Proc. IRE, Vol. 41, No. 4, pp. 549–550, April, 1953.
B. R. Bean & B. A. Cahoon,A note on the climatic variation of absolute humidity, to be published in Vol. 36, No. 7 the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society.
L. J. Battan,Observations on the formation and spread of precipitation in convective clouds, Journal of Meteorology, Vol. 10, No. 5, pp. 311–324, October, 1953.
H. R. Byers & R. R. Braham,The Thunderstorm, U. S. Government Printing Office, 287 pp., 1949.
K. A. Norton,Point-to-point radio relaying, via the scatter mode of tropospheric propagation, IRE Transactions of the Professional Group on Communications Systems, Vol. CS-4, No. 1, pp. 39–49, March 1956.
G. B. Becker & S. H. Autler,Water vapor absorption of electromagnetic radiation in the centimeter wavelength range, Phys. Rev., Vol. 70, No. 5 and 6, September 1 and 15, 1946.
M. Tinkham &M. W. P. Strandberg,Line breadths in the microwave magnetic resonance spectrum of oxygen, Phys. Riv., Vol. 99, No. 2, pp. 537–539, July 15, 1955.
H. R. L. Lamont,Atmospheric absorption of microwaves, Phys. Rev., Vol. 74, No. 3, p. 353, August, 1948.
R. M. Whitehurst &F. H. Mitchell,Solar temperature and atmo spheric attenuation in the 7–8 mm wavelength region, Proc. IRE, Vol. 44, No. 12, pp. 1879–1880, 1956.
P. André, I. Kazes &J. L. Steinberg,Mesure de l'absorption atmosphérique sur 9350Mhz utilisant le rayonnement radio-électrique solaire, Comptes Rendus, Vol. 242, No. 17, pp. 2099–2101, 23 Avril, 1956.
C. W. Tolbert &A. W. Straiton,Experimental measurement of the absorption of millimeter radio waves over extended ranges, IRE Transactions of the Professional Group on Antennas and Propagation, Vol. AP-5, No. 2, pp. 239–241, April, 1957.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Portions of this paper were presented in preliminary form at the Symposium on Communication by Scatter Techniques-George Washington University, Washington, D. C., November 14 and 15, 1955.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bean, B.R., Abbott, R. Oxygen and water vapor absorption of radio waves in the atmosphere. Geofisica Pura e Applicata 37, 127–144 (1957). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01988856
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01988856