On Sat, 12 Jun 2004 06:59:01 GMT, "Jim Hampton"
wrote:


"Frank Gilliland" wrote in message
.. .
In , "Jim Hampton"
wrote:

snip
Most
likely, the phase of the moon (less illumination from the sun means less
noise) and its' distance from the earth.


Huh? I'm no expert in microwaves, but I don't see how sunlight can be
the cause of noise in a lower part of the EM spectrum, unless the
effect is caused indirectly.

Frank,

Do a Google search on blackbody radiation. The sun radiates far more than
light. There is uv (I'm sure you're aware), plus microwave, plus lower
frequencies as well. The temperature of the body determines where the bell
curve of frequency of radiation will peak, but there is a heck of a lot of
other radiation too.


The sun most definitely radiates noise. Ask any satellite TV user
about "sun outages" during the spring and fall when the sun is in
direct line with the satellites. You can literally watch the noise
floor rise along with the sun. At some point, the noise is high enough
that it starts playing havoc with the S/N ratio of analog signals and
the BER of digital ones.

Dave
"Sandbagger"