Study of Seasonal Surface Refractivity over NorthCentral Nigeria
Tropospheric radio wave signals experience loss due to multipath effect, scattering and other forms of attenuation through the atmospheric medium, primarily due to variations in weather conditions with time. The knowledge of surface refractivity profile is important for optimal planning of Very High...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Department of Physics, Kaduna State University, Nigeria
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Physics Access |
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| Online Access: | https://physicsaccess.com/articles/published/PA-JPET-Vol%2001-Issue%2002_78.pdf |
| _version_ | 1797980105979461632 |
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| author | Muhammad B Ladan Oyedum O David Jibrin A Yabagi Ndanusa Babakacha Mohammed I Kimpa Mohammed Z Doko Abdullahi A Saba Umar Sadiq Franscious Cummings |
| author_facet | Muhammad B Ladan Oyedum O David Jibrin A Yabagi Ndanusa Babakacha Mohammed I Kimpa Mohammed Z Doko Abdullahi A Saba Umar Sadiq Franscious Cummings |
| author_sort | Muhammad B Ladan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Tropospheric radio wave signals experience loss due to multipath effect, scattering and other forms of attenuation through the atmospheric medium, primarily due to variations in weather conditions with time. The knowledge of surface refractivity profile is important for optimal planning of Very High Frequency/Ultra High Frequency (VHF/UHF) terrestrial radio links in a region. The study of surface refractivity (Ns) over the North-Central Nigeria was carried out using meteorological data from seven locations in North-Central zone of Nigeria. The seasonal variations of Ns were also derived using the monthly summaries of surface data obtained from Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) over seven stations of Abuja, Lafia, Lokoja, Makurdi, Jos, Minna and Ilorin between 2005 and 2010.The results indicated that the monthly averages of radio refractivity during the rainy season months (April to October) are greater than the Ns values during the dry season months (November to March) for all the locations throughout the years of the study. The computed of mean monthly Ns over all the seven stations in the first 1 km above the ground level is 348 N-units, which gives mean refractivity gradient (dN/dh) of -49 N/k, these shows that the region is characterised by low scale super-refraction. The mean k-factor over the entire region in the first 1 km above the ground level is 1.4; the mean Field Strength Variability (FSV) in first 1 km of height in the region was calculated to be 14 dB. The mean Radio Horizon distance within 1 km height for a transmitter height of 100 m over the stations is 42 km. The results provide useful information needed by radio engineers to set up new terrestrial radio propagation links or to improve on the existing ones especially at VHF, UHF in the North-Central region of Nigeria, as recommended by International Telecommunication Union Recommendations (ITU-R P.453, 2013), which observed the need for local reference data on refractivity and refractivity gradients all over the world. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T05:49:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a73ad38a5b424e6ba70c640d18469fb8 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2714-500X 2756-3898 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T05:49:07Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | Department of Physics, Kaduna State University, Nigeria |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Physics Access |
| spelling | doaj.art-a73ad38a5b424e6ba70c640d18469fb82022-12-22T04:42:07ZengDepartment of Physics, Kaduna State University, NigeriaPhysics Access2714-500X2756-38982021-10-011251310.47514/phyaccess.2020.1.2.002Study of Seasonal Surface Refractivity over NorthCentral NigeriaMuhammad B Ladan0Oyedum O David1Jibrin A Yabagi2Ndanusa Babakacha3Mohammed I Kimpa4Mohammed Z Doko5Abdullahi A Saba6Umar Sadiq7Franscious Cummings8Department of Physics, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State, NigeriaDepartment of Physics, Federal University of Technology, Minna, NigeriaDepartment of Physics, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State, NigeriaDepartment of Physics, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State, NigeriaDepartment of Physics, Federal University of Technology, Minna, NigeriaCorps Information Technology Office, Network & Communication Unit, Federal Road Safety Corps, National Headquarters Abuja, NigeriaDepartment of Physics, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State, NigeriaDepartment of Physics, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State, NigeriaElectron Microscope Unit, University of the Western Cape, Private Bag X17, Bellville 7535, South AfricaTropospheric radio wave signals experience loss due to multipath effect, scattering and other forms of attenuation through the atmospheric medium, primarily due to variations in weather conditions with time. The knowledge of surface refractivity profile is important for optimal planning of Very High Frequency/Ultra High Frequency (VHF/UHF) terrestrial radio links in a region. The study of surface refractivity (Ns) over the North-Central Nigeria was carried out using meteorological data from seven locations in North-Central zone of Nigeria. The seasonal variations of Ns were also derived using the monthly summaries of surface data obtained from Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) over seven stations of Abuja, Lafia, Lokoja, Makurdi, Jos, Minna and Ilorin between 2005 and 2010.The results indicated that the monthly averages of radio refractivity during the rainy season months (April to October) are greater than the Ns values during the dry season months (November to March) for all the locations throughout the years of the study. The computed of mean monthly Ns over all the seven stations in the first 1 km above the ground level is 348 N-units, which gives mean refractivity gradient (dN/dh) of -49 N/k, these shows that the region is characterised by low scale super-refraction. The mean k-factor over the entire region in the first 1 km above the ground level is 1.4; the mean Field Strength Variability (FSV) in first 1 km of height in the region was calculated to be 14 dB. The mean Radio Horizon distance within 1 km height for a transmitter height of 100 m over the stations is 42 km. The results provide useful information needed by radio engineers to set up new terrestrial radio propagation links or to improve on the existing ones especially at VHF, UHF in the North-Central region of Nigeria, as recommended by International Telecommunication Union Recommendations (ITU-R P.453, 2013), which observed the need for local reference data on refractivity and refractivity gradients all over the world.https://physicsaccess.com/articles/published/PA-JPET-Vol%2001-Issue%2002_78.pdftemperaturebarometric pressurerelative humiditytropospheric surface refractivity |
| spellingShingle | Muhammad B Ladan Oyedum O David Jibrin A Yabagi Ndanusa Babakacha Mohammed I Kimpa Mohammed Z Doko Abdullahi A Saba Umar Sadiq Franscious Cummings Study of Seasonal Surface Refractivity over NorthCentral Nigeria Physics Access temperature barometric pressure relative humidity tropospheric surface refractivity |
| title | Study of Seasonal Surface Refractivity over NorthCentral Nigeria |
| title_full | Study of Seasonal Surface Refractivity over NorthCentral Nigeria |
| title_fullStr | Study of Seasonal Surface Refractivity over NorthCentral Nigeria |
| title_full_unstemmed | Study of Seasonal Surface Refractivity over NorthCentral Nigeria |
| title_short | Study of Seasonal Surface Refractivity over NorthCentral Nigeria |
| title_sort | study of seasonal surface refractivity over northcentral nigeria |
| topic | temperature barometric pressure relative humidity tropospheric surface refractivity |
| url | https://physicsaccess.com/articles/published/PA-JPET-Vol%2001-Issue%2002_78.pdf |
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