Investigation on fading of high frequency radio signals propagating in the ionosphere - results from a Jindalee radar experiment

Abstract

High-frequency (HF) radio-wave propagation in the ionosphere is still widely used. The ability to measure and understand the behaviour of the channel, and the knowledge of how the channel will affect the propagating signals, is imperative to ensure the reliability, and maintain adequate performance, of modern wide-bandwidth HF systems. An experiment to study the fading of HF signals propagating in the ionosphere has been conducted. Using the Jindalee over-the-horizon (OTH) radar, the behaviour of the ionospheric channel and wide bandwidth signal fading were observed. In this paper results from the experiment will be presented, and the potential uses for the set of experimental data will be discussed.