Fade dynamics variability in a long-term slant-path Ka-band experiment

This study is based on the results of a slant-path Ka-band propagation experiment carried out in Madrid, Spain, regarding rain attenuation, which is the main propagation impairment in this frequency band, and is focused on fade dynamics. The experimental and statistical results correspond to seven complete years of measurements, a period large enough to characterize the variability of fade dynamics. Variability is assessed on the basis of annual statistics of fade and interfade durations as well as fade slopes. The inter-annual variability is higher for high attenuation thresholds and for the lowest time percentages. Average-year distributions are in many cases close to the predictions made by ITU-R and CRC models.