Millimeterwave propagation within the marine boundary layer in European and tropical regions

During recent years measurement campaigns have been conducted to result in a data base representative for propagation in the marine boundary layer at radar bands ranging from X- to W-band, which is valid for ocean areas typical for Europe. Very often a shortcoming of these measurements has been the lack of sufficient environmental data or a too small variation of environmental conditions during the measurement period. In the context of the CEPA 1, radar measurements have been conducted at the Baltic Sea with an excellent characterization of the atmosphere and the sea surface. In the framework of a cooperative program between Singapore and Germany new radar measurements have been done in the sea area around Singapore, which is a typical tropical environment. The data have been analyzed and propagation models have been tested using the relevant environmental information. It turned out that atmospheric conditions exist, which are considerably different from the known Baltic Sea situations. The paper describes the experimental approach and compares typical results for European and tropical conditions