Deduction of ground impedance from measurements of excess attenuation spectra

An efficient numerical method of deducing ground-surface impedance from measurements of short-range propagation from a point source is proposed. The method involves finding the root of a complex equation and uses the fact that the classical approximation for the spherical wave-reflection coefficient near grazing incidence is an analytic function of the impedance. Examples of fitting measured excess-attenuation spectra are given. Methods for ensuring the uniqueness of the resulting impedance fits are discussed. Subsequent deductions of parameters in a two-parameter impedance model are also considered and exemplified.