ITALSAT Ka, Q and V band Cross polar discrimination statistics measured in Spino d’Adda, Italy

Cross polar discrimination (XPD) is a widespread parameter used to measure the disturbance introduced on electromagnetic signals by the loss of polarisation, when dual polarisation links are employed. Rain precipitations and ice clouds contribute to the increase of XPD in the atmosphere. The current ITU-R Recommendation P.618 links the prediction of the XPD to the excess attenuation probability of a specific site. The statistical analysis of the XPD reported in this contribution is a basic step towards an improved model for next generation dual polarisation links design.