Rain attenuation distribution for satellite microwave links application in Tanzania

Rain rate and Rain Attenuation predictions are important in radio system operating at Ku and Ka bands as they affect telecommunication systems performance. To adequately estimate rain-induced attenuation and fading, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) recommends for the use of rainfall data collected by using 1-minute integration time. Tanzania lacks rainfall data with 1-minute integration time, which is available either through measurements or conversion from rainfall data with longer integration time. In this paper the rain attenuation is predicted for seven locations in the coastal area of Tanzania. The 1- minute rainfall rate is determined by Chebil’s model by using long-term measurements from Tanzania Metrological Agency (TMA) collected for a period of forty years. The results which were obtained were used to estimate rain attenuations. By using the International Telecommunication Union-Recommendation (ITU-R) model, rain attenuation is predicted at horizontal polarization at Ku and Ka band. It is observed that, the attenuation is of ultimate effect in Unguja and least in Kibaha. The results obtained from this study can be used to design earth satellite microwave links in the coastal area of Tanzani