Development and application of microwave radiometric techniques for modeling satellite-earth propagation at V and W band

Sun-tracking microwave (ST-MW) radiometry is a ground-based technique where the Sun is used as a beacon source to infer the atmospheric path attenuation in all-weather conditions. ST-MW radiometry shows an appealing potential for overcoming the difficulties to perform satellite-to-Earth radiopropagation experiments in the unexplored millimeter-wave and submillimeter-wave frequency region, especially where experimental data from beacon receivers are not available. The theoretical framework, the ad hoc procedures and data processing will be presented, together with the estimate of the overall error budget. The applications and challenges during field deployments, such as the recent WRad campaign in Italy based on ST-MW data analysis, funded by ESA and carried out together with AFRL (NY, USA), will be discussed.