I’ve tried to read and understand several books on the propagation of radio waves, but they were all too academic for me. Recently I’ve come across Flavio Egano’s (IK3XTV) book entitled “Amateur Radio Propagation Studies”:

The book is a compilation of Egano’s own experiments and observations on radio propagation, which sets it apart from other available publications. Rather than relying solely on theory, Egano shares the results of his practical experiments, giving the reader a practical insight into how radio waves behave under different conditions. As the book is not too theoretical, it has motivated me to carry out my own experiments. Egano always provides the reader with understandable examples for each topic or theory.

Another very positive aspect of “Amateur Radio Propagation Studies” is its availability under a Creative Commons licence. This licensing choice reflects Egano’s commitment to sharing knowledge within the amateur radio community.

As mentioned above, the book is based on a large number of individual papers published in Italian on the author’s website. It can be purchased from this one particular online bookstore (I won’t link it because it’s a strictly non-commercial site) or downloaded from archive.org (again, no link because this site may be illegal in your country).

I highly recommend this book to all radio amateurs who want to learn how and why (or not) their signals travel around the world. It’s a very interesting read that gave me many eureka moments.