Study on the maximum calculation height and the maximum propagation angle of the troposcatter wide-angle parabolic equation method

In this study, a method to choose the maximum calculation height and the maximum propagation angle of the split-step troposcatter wide-angle parabolic equation (TWAPE) method is presented. The method is implemented with the height and the scatter angle of the troposcatter common volume. The performance of this method is then demonstrated with a few examples which rely heavily on the choosing of the maximum calculation height and the maximum propagation angle. These examples include the comparison of calculated results of TWAPE for choosing different maximum calculated height and maximum propagation angle at frequencies of 3 and 1 GHz, path lengths of 300 and 500 km, respectively. Finally, the seasonal variation mechanism of the troposcatter propagation loss is discussed based on the seasonal variation of the refractive-index structure parameter.