Tropospheric delay in microwave propagation in Nigeria

Satellite communication systems suffer from the systematic error of tropospheric delay. Accurate estimation of this delay is essential for communication budget and planning. This study investigates the tropospheric delay in three Nigeria cities: Abuja, Lagos, Port Harcourt using two different models (Saastominen and Hopfield). Three-year atmospheric data for surface pressure, relative humidity and temperature obtained at 5-min interval were acquired from the Tropospheric Data Acquisition Network (TRODAN) archives. Computed radio refractivity values showed distinct seasonal dependence in Abuja with low and high values during the dry and wet seasons respectively. The Hopfield model predicts higher hydrostatic delay values than the Saastominen model. In the non-hydrostatic delay, the two models converge to a single value at high temperature. Theorems were proposed with proofs to explain the relationship observed between the two models. © 2021, Saudi Society for Geosciences.