[VHFcontesting] A question of altitude

[Dan Evans]

With antennas that low, I think the biggest influence is the vehicle and 
not the take off angle.   It may be completely wrong, but I always 
pictured it as the vehicle in the near field coupling with the antenna, 
and creating considerable loss.

At some "minimum" point above the vehicle, this loss is reduced to 
negligible level.  From Jon's, W0ZQ /R, data, it would seem that height 
for 6 meters would be around 21 feet.  Actual numbers would depend on 
the band involved, and the antenna.

All of this is my opinion based on my experience and anecdotal 
evidence.  I'm a Rover, not a scientist:-)  Your points per mile may vary!

73
Dan
-- 
K9ZF /R no budget Rover ***QRP-l #1269 
Check out the Rover Resource Page at: <http://www.qsl.net/n9rla> 
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Bill Olson wrote:
> In real life, at K1WHS, I seem to remember having problem working rovers with low antennas (7-10ft) on 6M, and they nearly always had a drop off in front of them.. I guess what I'm saying is, over a, say, 200 mile path, with the same rover, there didn't seem to be much difference if he was on flat ground or overlooking a cliff.. the signal was still a lot weaker than we thought it should be.. I guess we really need some testing here.. Guess I'll do that in June and report back...
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> bill, K1DY
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