Long-term statistics related to evaporation duct propagation of 2 GHz radio waves in the English Channel

This paper presents long‐term statistics additional to those previously published pertaining to evaporation duct propagation of UHF radio waves in the British Channel Islands, with particular focus on a completely over‐sea 50 km transhorizon path. The importance of the evaporation duct as an anomalous propagation mechanism in marine and coastal regions is highlighted. In particular, the influence of various atmospheric parameters on the performance of a popular operational evaporation duct model is examined. The strengths and weaknesses of this model are evaluated under specific atmospheric conditions. The relationship between the continually varying evaporation duct height and transmitter‐receiver antenna geometries is analyzed, and a range of statistics related to the implications of this relationship on the received signal strength is presented. The various issues under investigation are of direct relevance in the planning of long‐range, over‐sea radio systems operating in the UHF band, and have implications for the radio regulatory work carried out by organizations such as the International Telecommunication Union.