A rain estimation model based on microwave signal attenuation measurements in the city of Ioannina, Greece

Rain monitoring through signal attenuation has been a significant concern for the scientific community over the last decade. The lowest L‐, S‐ and C‐bands in the microwave spectrum are full of potential for environmental monitoring devices. It has not been extensively proven whether signal attenuation can be used for rain estimation throughout the microwave spectrum in the region of 1–6 GHz. The study derives a power‐law rain estimation model by validating the one year data for the amount of rain and signal attenuation at the lowest limit of the S‐band. This is achieved by a prototype accurate experimental set‐up in a laboratory environment at the campus of the University of Ioannina, northwest Greece. A comparison with global rain attenuation models as well as measurements near this frequency band are also presented and discussed. A rain attenuation model in the lowest region of the microwave S‐band from measurements that took place at the University of Ioannina by a customized and accurate experimental set‐up is presented. The derived estimation model showed very good agreement with measurements near this frequency band. The study intends to contribute in an innovative way to the improvement of the monitoring of spatial rainfall variability, which is significant mainly for convective rainfall regimes.