Which statement best identifies all ground wave components?

Which statement best identifies all ground wave components?

• A. Ground Waves Can Include Direct Wave, Ground Reflected Wave, and Surface Wave
• B. Ground Waves Are Composed Only of Surface Wave
• C. Ground Waves Are The Same As Sky Waves
• D. Ground Waves Travel Only In Vacuum

Answer: (B)

Ground wave propagation is the portion of the radio signal that travels along the Earth's surface, staying close to the ground and following the terrain. The energy that does this is the surface wave. The direct wave moves through the air in a line-of-sight path and is not considered a ground wave, while sky waves are ionospherically reflected waves used for long-range links. So, the ground wave is described as being composed of the surface wave only, with the other propagation modes (direct/space wave and sky wave) falling into separate categories. The statements about ground waves including a direct wave or traveling only in vacuum don’t fit the real behavior of ground-wave propagation.

Ground wave propagation is the portion of the radio signal that travels along the Earth's surface, staying close to the ground and following the terrain. The energy that does this is the surface wave. The direct wave moves through the air in a line-of-sight path and is not considered a ground wave, while sky waves are ionospherically reflected waves used for long-range links. So, the ground wave is described as being composed of the surface wave only, with the other propagation modes (direct/space wave and sky wave) falling into separate categories. The statements about ground waves including a direct wave or traveling only in vacuum don’t fit the real behavior of ground-wave propagation.