Lightweight conformal dual band antenna for spaceborne applications

The paper presents a dual-band integrated antenna for use onboard spacecraft. The L- and S-band antenna was developed in a course of our research we have carried on spacecraft antennas. The designed antenna features low profile which is more and more often desired in modern spacecraft. However, when antennas have low profile it is extremely difficult to generate high quality circular polarization over the wide spatial angle across the beam of the antenna element. The design of antenna electromagnetic and microwave circuits are meeting this expectation, so one patch is capable to serve well communication subsystem in one band across the entire radio horizon seen from the International Space Station (about 4000 km in diameter). Owing to conformality in the profile the antenna can be mounted on Earth and save significant efforts during attachment of the module.