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Published October 2019 | public
Journal Article

Advanced CubeSat Antennas for Deep Space and Earth Science Missions: A review

Abstract

Small satellites (smallsats) provide low-cost access to space and have historically been used for flight technology demonstrations and limited-function space science activities. Novel antenna technologies have enabled high-performance smallsat telecommunications, science in Earth orbit, and the first CubeSat mission to deep space. In the past five years, technologists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have designed, tested, and successfully flown these innovative and enabling smallsat antennas. This article describes these innovations and their impact on smallsat performance for recent and future NASA missions.

Additional Information

© 2019 IEEE. We acknowledge the outstanding contributions from mechanical engineers Dr. Manan Arya, Vinh Bach, Brant Cook, Dr. Jonathan Sauder, Philip Walkemeyer, and John Luke Wolf. Whether an antenna is deployable or not, collaboration between mechanical and radio-frequency engineers is key to ensuring reliable flight hardware.

Additional details

Created:
August 19, 2023
Modified:
October 18, 2023