What is space wave propagation? Give two examples of communication system which use space wave mode.
A TV tower is 80 m tall. Calculate the maximum distance upto which the signal transmitted from the tower can be received.
A space wave travels in a straight line from transmitting antenna to the receiving antenna. Space waves are used for line-of-sight (LOS) communication as well as satellite communication. At frequencies >50 MHz, communication is essentially limited to line-of-sight paths because waves cannot travel along earths surface as they get absorbed by earth, so propagation cannot be like ground wave propagation.Likewise propagation cannot be like sky waves as they are not reflected by ionosphere.
At these frequencies, the antennas are relatively smaller and can be placed at heights of many wavelengths above the ground. Because of line-of-sight nature of propagation, direct waves get blocked at some point by the curvature of the earth. If the signal is to be received beyond the horizon then the receiving antenna must be high enough to intercept the line-of-sight waves.
Two examples of communications systems which use space wave mode are - Television broadcast, microwave links and satellite communication.
Given h = 80 m, R = 6400 km
Therefore the maximum distance up to which the signal transmitted from the tower can be received is 32 km.