Comparative Study of Worst Month Rain Rate and Attenuation Statistics for Satellite Links in Nigeria

Abstract

There is an increasing demand for communication-based technology in different sectors of the economy. This is fueled by growing population, dropping cost of technology, and increasing demand for technology products. Some of these technology products such as electronic banking and telemedicine require high quality satellite connection for efficiency. The increasing number of satellite-based products require Quality of Service (QoS) with high integrity for a large number of users across different geographical regions. Satellite to earth communication links face significant challenges such as tropospheric zenith delay (Ogunjo et al., 2020), as well as, stratospheric scintillation and atmospheric attenuation (Yakovlev et al., 1995). In the lower atmosphere, satellite signals suffer from refraction, delay (Ogunjo et al., 2018), and attenuation by fog (Nadeem et al., 2010), rain (J. S. Ojo et al., 2008), and dust (Ahmed et al., 1987). Phase synchronization has been established between rain rate and radio refractivity in different locations within Nigeria (Fuwape et al., 2016).At high frequency, rain is the greatest factor in radio communication systems in tropical region due to their peculiar rainfall characteristics. This has increased the research interest on rain attenuation within the region. Different models have been proposed for the estimation of rain attenuation. One of the earliest models was based on the geophysical properties of rainfall at a point and temperature profile at that location (R. Crane, 1980). The model was extended by considering the probability of occurrence of a convective cell (R. K. Crane, 1982). Assis and Einloft (1977) introduced a simple algorithm for rain attenuation at frequencies greater than 10 GHz based on rain rate statistics alone. In the Australian model Flavin (1996) estimates the attenuation as frequencies less than 60 GHz and is based on rain rate distribution. Other rain attenuation models proposed in literature are Bryant model (

Rainfall’s Symphony: Understanding Its Influence on Communication Systems in Nigeria

“…[18,[30][31][32] provide pronounced evidence on the degrading impacts of rain on digital satellite television applications over the region. Studies in Ref.s [33,34] explore rain rate and attenuation across Nigeria's climatic zones, emphasizing the worst months' impact on earth-space radio links and presenting useful statistics such as the Average Worst Month and Average Yearly Worst Month for communication link designs over specified locations across Nigeria. The current state of research on rainfall and its associated signal attenuation in Nigeria is marked by a notable gap in knowledge [33], which has significantly been influenced by the dearth of data.…”

“…Studies in Ref.s [33,34] explore rain rate and attenuation across Nigeria's climatic zones, emphasizing the worst months' impact on earth-space radio links and presenting useful statistics such as the Average Worst Month and Average Yearly Worst Month for communication link designs over specified locations across Nigeria. The current state of research on rainfall and its associated signal attenuation in Nigeria is marked by a notable gap in knowledge [33], which has significantly been influenced by the dearth of data. Addressing this gap is, however, imperative in order to enhance the reliability of communication networks across the country's diverse climatic regions.…”