signal reflector

[towerdog]

I had an idea while I was climbing up an old AT&T microwave tower. Some of the old microwave hops used a giant reflector atop a tower at a 45 degree angle, commonly refered to as a "fly swatter" with the feedhorns on the ground pointing up.

I wonder how well you could reflect a UHF or even VHF signal, perhaps even set up a reflector on top of a ridge and aim a yagi at the reflector, and, talk over the mountain. I would assume a flat foil coated disc of a diameter close to the wavelength being used would work, maybe try different parabolic radius.

Has anyone heard of such being done, I mean we reflect crap off the ionosphere, off meteors, and various atmosphereic layers, even the moon. I would think you could do the same off a foil disc.

Now say I installed such a disc, 6,700 feet above sea level....hmmm this may be intresting.

 

[Captain Kilowatt]

It's done all the time in mountainous areas and is called a passive repeater. It's not really a repeater as we know them but it does reflect the signal into otherwise hard to hit areas.A couple hams up this way had an ATV link set up between them that used a pair of old staellite dishes on the mountain ridge that was between them with one dish aimed at each of them. Without the passive repeater there was no signal on the UHF frequency they were using however with the dishes carefully aimed the signals were clear copy.

BTW the antenna system you described is called a periscope antenna.