Having said this much about AZ and EL plots, we tend to stop our investigation. In doing so, we often deny ourselves useful data that might be supplied by a few supplementary plots. One solution to this situation is to move the beam heading by 20 degrees. However, one might wonder whether this solution is necessary. The ultimate answer to the question might well involve the type of operation involved.
Casual contact leaves the operator plenty of time to change the antenna direction.
However, there are contest and similar operational contexts in which every movement that can be classified as unnecessary is eliminated as part of the operational strategy. Hence, for some contexts, the decision to move or not to move the antenna heading may acquire some significance. One important piece of data that might enter into the decision process is how much signal strength we might lose by not moving the antenna. Alternatively, we can ask how much signal strength we would have in the secondary direction if we leave the heading in the primary direction. The answer is as simple as requesting a new elevation plot using a heading that is in the secondary direction.