This Thesis investigates the effects of noise caused by lightning discharges and Precipitation Static (P-Static) in the Loran-C band, as observed by an airborne receiver.
To characterize the noise, an airborne data collection system was used to store the radio frequency samples from both a loop (H-field) antenna and a wire (E-field) antenna. Flight test data were collected and analyzed under nominal, P-Static, and nearby thunderstorm conditions.
Based on the research described in this thesis it was found that: 1) E-field and H-field antennas are affected similarly by lightning-induced noise; 2) In the presence of thunderstorms, the noise increase for both antennas was less than 2.3 dB; and 3) An H-field antenna effectively mitigates aircraft P-Static noise in the Loran-C band.