CubeSat Antenna Design E-Book

Nacer Chahat

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
• Serie: JPL Space Science and Technology Series
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 443

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020

Beschreibung

Presents an overview of CubeSat antennas designed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) CubeSats--nanosatellites built to standard dimensions of 10cm x 10 cm x cm--are making space-based Earth science observation and interplanetary space science affordable, accessible, and rapidly deployable for institutions such as universities and smaller space agencies around the world. CubeSat Antenna Design is an up-to-date overview of CubeSat antennas designed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), covering the systems engineering knowledge required to design these antennas from a radio frequency and mechanical perspective. This authoritative volume features contributions by leading experts in the field, providing insights on mission-critical design requirements for state-of-the-art CubeSat antennas and discussing their development, capabilities, and applications. The text begins with a brief introduction to CubeSats, followed by a detailed survey of low-gain, medium-gain, and high-gain antennas. Subsequent chapters cover topics including the telecommunication subsystem of Mars Cube One (MarCO), the enabling technology of Radar in a CubeSat (RainCube), the development of a one-meter mesh reflector for telecommunication at X- and Ka-band for deep space missions, and the design of multiple metasurface antennas. Written to help antenna engineers to enable new CubeSate NASA missions, this volume: * Describes the selection of high-gain CubeSat antennas to address specific mission requirements and constraints for instruments or telecommunication * Helps readers learn how to develop antennas for future CubeSat missions * Provides key information on the effect of space environment on antennas to inform design steps * Covers patch and patch array antennas, deployable reflectarray antennas, deployable mesh reflector, inflatable antennas, and metasurface antennas CubeSat Antenna Design is an important resource for antenna/microwave engineers, aerospace systems engineers, and advanced graduate and postdoctoral students wanting to learn how to design and fabricate their own antennas to address clear mission requirements.

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Cover

IEEE Press

CubeSat Antenna Design

Copyright

Preface

Editor Biography

Notes on Contributors

1 Introduction

1.1 Description of CubeSats

1.2 Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

2 Mars Cube One

2.1 Mission Description

2.2 Iris Radio

2.3 X‐Band Subsystem

2.4 Entry, Descent, and Landing UHF Link

2.5 Conclusions

Acknowledgments

References

3 Radar in a CubeSat: RainCube

3.1 Mission Description

3.2 Deployable High‐Gain Antenna

3.3 Telecommunication Challenge

3.4 Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

4 One Meter Reflectarray Antenna: OMERA

4.1 Introduction

4.2 Reflectarray Antennas

4.3 OMERA

4.4 Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

5 X/Ka‐Band One Meter Mesh Reflector for 12U‐Class CubeSat

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Mechanical Design

5.3 X/Ka RF Design

5.4 Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

6 Inflatable Antenna for CubeSat

6.1 Introduction

6.2 Inflatable High Gain Antenna

6.3 Spacecraft Design Challenges

6.4 Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

7 High Aperture Efficiency All‐Metal Patch Array

7.1 Introduction

7.2 State of the Art

7.3 Dual‐Band Circularly Polarized 8 × 8 Patch Array

7.4 Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

8 Metasurface Antennas: Flat Antennas for Small Satellites

8.1 Introduction

8.2 Modulated Metasurface Antennas

8.3 Beam Synthesis Using Holographic Metasurface Antennas

8.4 Conclusion

Acknowledgments

References

Index

End User License Agreement

List of Tables

Chapter 1

Table 1.1 Performance of patch array with different configuration.

Table 1.2 Deployable reflectarray performance for CubeSats.

Table 1.3 Deployable mesh reflector performance for CubeSats.

Table 1.4

Deployable high gain antenna performance for CubeSats

.

Table 1.5

Radiation doses in rads for damage to PTFE material

.

Table 1.6

Outgassing test results of Rogers 5880 and 4003C

.

Chapter 2

Table 2.1 Low‐gain antenna requirements.

Table 2.2 Mars low‐gain antenna requirements.

Table 2.3 High‐gain antennas requirements.

Table 2.4 Simulated and measured realized gain of the feed.

Table 2.5 Marco antenna gain budget.

Table 2.6 HGA radiation pattern performances.

Table 2.7 UHF deployable antenna requirements.

Chapter 3

Table 3.1 Gain table at 35.75 GHz after compensation (30 ribs).

Table 3.2 Gain loss for 0.2 mm surface RMS at S‐, X‐, Ka‐, and W‐bands.

Table 3.3 Measurement results at 35.75 GHz.

Chapter 4

Table 4.1 Reflectarray requirements.

Table 4.2 Telescoping waveguide dimensions.

Table 4.3 Deployable feed horn calculated and measured directivity and gain.

Table 4.4 Required and achieved deployment accuracy.

Table 4.5 Gain table at 35.75 GHz.

Chapter 5

Table 5.1 Calculated and measured X‐band feed performance.

Table 5.2 X‐Band mesh reflector gain table at X‐band.

Table 5.3 X‐Band mesh reflector directivity, gain, and loss at X‐band.

Table 5.4 Ka‐band gain table at 32 GHz.

Table 5.5 Ka‐band antenna directivity, gain, and efficiency at 32 and 34.45 G...

Table 5.6 Calculated directivity and gain of the X/Ka‐band antenna.

Chapter 6

Table 6.1 Inflatable antenna measurements at different values of pressure at ...

Table 6.2 Inflatable antenna measurements at 0.2 psi for different values of ...

Chapter 7

Table 7.1 Dimensions of the optimized patch element.

Table 7.2 Measured and calculated directivity, gain, and axial ratio.

Table 7.3 Antenna performance comparison with state-of-the-art.

Table 7.4 Metal patch arrays for different form factor.

Chapter 8

Table 8.1 Summary of modulated MTS antennas realized by printed patches.

Table 8.2 Performance of improved passive metasurface antenna using metal str...

List of Illustrations

Chapter 1

Figure 1.1 (a) Photography of Trami Typhoon taken from the ISS. (b) RainCube...

Figure 1.2 Photography of Insight landing site taken shortly after its succe...

Figure 1.3 (a) Lunar Flashlight [3] uses reflected sunlight to determine whe...

Figure 1.4 Different form factors of CubeSat.

Figure 1.5 Examples of 3U and 6U CubeSats. (a) ISARA (3U). (b) Raincube (6U)...

Figure 1.6 (a) Sun sensor. (b) Reaction wheel.

Figure 1.7 MarCO micro propulsion system.

Figure 1.8 NeaScout solar sail fully deployed.

Figure 1.9 Two dual‐axis deployment 36 W BOL deployable solar arrays on MarC...

Figure 1.10 Raincube LEO CubeSat uses both UHF and S‐band telecommunication ...

Figure 1.11 Near‐Earth Asteroid Scout (Nea Scout) CubeSat employs four LGAs ...

Figure 1.12 Maximum antenna misalignment to close the link at 62.5 kbps. (a)...

Figure 1.13 Turnstile UHF deployable dipole antenna.

Figure 1.14 Examples of techniques to design circularly‐polarized patch ante...

Figure 1.15 Low gain corner truncated circularly‐polarized patch array opera...

Figure 1.16 MarCO low gain circularly‐polarized patch array compatible with ...

Figure 1.17 NeaScout X‐band medium gain antenna located near solar cells. Th...

Figure 1.18 High gain antenna selection guidelines for CubeSats high gain an...

Figure 1.19 (a) NASA's JPL ISARA CubeSat [13] during Integration and Testing...

Figure 1.20 (a) NASA's JPL MarCO CubeSat during Integration and Testing. (b)...

Figure 1.21 One meter reflectarray (OMERA) compatible with 6U‐class CubeSat ...

Figure 1.22 Deep Space CubeSat Antenna operating at X‐band (DSCX). (a) Trans...

Figure 1.23 Deep Space CubeSat Antenna operating at (a) Ka‐band (DSCKa) and ...

Figure 1.24 One NASA's JPL 0.5‐m mesh reflector antenna on Raincube CubeSat ...

Figure 1.25 One‐meter deployable mesh reflector for deep space communication...

Figure 1.26 S‐band 1.5 m

2

aperture deployable membrane antenna after its fir...

Figure 1.27 X‐band 1.5 m

2

aperture deployable membrane antenna in an anechoi...

Figure 1.28 X‐band deployable slot array for small satellites..

Chapter 2

Figure 2.1 MARCO mission consists of two CubeSats flying alongside the InSig...

Figure 2.2 (a) MarCO CubeSat with emphasis on telecom subsystem; (b) MarCO C...

Figure 2.3 MarCO flight hardware. (a) Photograph of the Iris V2 Deep‐Space T...

Figure 2.4 Simplified transponder block diagram.

Figure 2.5 Low gain antennas: (a) Rx‐LGA; (b) Tx‐LGA; (c) LGAs fixed on MarC...

Figure 2.6 Reflection coefficient of the two low gain antennas (Rx‐LGA and T...

Figure 2.7 Radiation pattern of Rx-LGA at 7.1675 GHz. (a) Elevation; (b) Azi...

Figure 2.8 Radiation pattern of Tx‐LGA at 8.425 GHz. (a) Elevation; (b) Azim...

Figure 2.9 Pointing required to receive commands at 62.5 bps using the Rx‐LG...

Figure 2.10 Pointing required to transmit telemetry at 62.5 bps using the Tx...

Figure 2.11 (a) Rx‐MLGA (left) and Tx‐MLGA (right);(b) MLGAs fixed on MarCO ...

Figure 2.12 Reflection coefficient of the two MLGAs (Rx‐MLGA and Tx‐MLGA) an...

Figure 2.13 Radiation pattern of Rx‐MLGA at 7.1675 GHz. (a) Elevation; (b) A...

Figure 2.14 Radiation pattern of Tx‐MLGA at 8.425 GHz. (a) Elevation; (b) Az...

Figure 2.15 MarCO High‐Gain Antenna deployment.

Figure 2.16 MarCO custom made hinge. (a) CAD model of the folded hinge; (b) ...

Figure 2.17 MarCO reflectarray panel configuration. It consists of three lay...

Figure 2.18 MarCO reflectarray S‐curve of the reflection phase vs patch size...

Figure 2.19 MarCO reflectarray panel layout. (a) Panel layout before adjusti...

Figure 2.20 MarCO reflectarray antenna optic design.

Figure 2.21 Patch antenna array model. (a) Top layer with Taylor distributio...

Figure 2.22 Photographies of the feed antenna.

Figure 2.23 Reflection coefficient of the reflectarray feed.

Figure 2.24 Radiation pattern of the feed. (Top) Elevation. (Bottom) Azimuth...

Figure 2.25 (a) Reflectarray prototype folded and deployed; (b) Photograph o...

Figure 2.26 Two MarCO flight spacecrafts.

Figure 2.27 MarCO deployment test setup to determine the deployment angle re...

Figure 2.28 (a) Measurement set‐up of the HGA in the cylindrical near field ...

Figure 2.29 Normalized measured HGA radiation pattern at (a) 8.4 GHz; (b) 8....

Figure 2.30 Carrier power during and post EDL from MarCO A and B at 0.977947...

Figure 2.31 Photography taken by MarCO B while approaching Mars.

Figure 2.32 MarCO 6U CubeSat fully deployed showing the proposed UHF loop an...

Figure 2.33 ISIS deployable UHF and VHF antenna.

Figure 2.34 Deployable wideband UHF antenna.

Figure 2.35 Patch antenna for CubeSat.

Figure 2.36 (a) Printed one wavelength loop antenna showing the bidirectiona...

Figure 2.37 Schematic illustrating the current flow of an electrically small...

Figure 2.38 Loop antenna design presenting the current flows on the signal t...

Figure 2.39 (a) Transition from coaxial to 50 Ω microstrip line; (b) Power s...

Figure 2.40 Stowed and deployed configurations of the UHF.

Figure 2.41 Selected mode shapes from Finite Element Analysis (FEA) Eigenval...

Figure 2.42 Deployed UHF antenna mechanical components, nomenclature.

Figure 2.43 Turnbuckle/Tension mechanism and Burn‐Wire Mechanisms. (Note, no...

Figure 2.44 Drawing of the manufactured loop antenna (top and bottom sides) ...

Figure 2.45 MarCO CubeSat UHF antenna as simulated in HFSS (a) top view); (b...

Figure 2.46 Measured Reflection coefficients of the four fabricated antennas...

Figure 2.47 West range antenna pattern measurement setup. The antenna under ...

Figure 2.48 Measured and HFSS simulated RHCP gain in the azimuthal and eleva...

Figure 2.49 Received signal strength and carrier frequency offset due to Dop...

Figure 2.50 Received signal strength and carrier frequency offset due to Dop...

Figure 2.51 MarCO antenna team with the high‐gain deployable reflectarray an...

Chapter 3

Figure 3.1 RainCube 6U CubeSat description.

Figure 3.2 The radar electronics and folded antenna integrated into the flig...

Figure 3.3 Photography of RainCube spacecraft with its antenna fully deploye...

Figure 3.4 (a) The inflatable antenna experiment; (b) S‐band inflatable ante...

Figure 3.5 (a) ISARA 3U CubeSat. Source: Based on Hodges et al. [3]. © 2015 ...

Figure 3.6 One‐meter Ka‐band deployable reflectarray combined with solar arr...

Figure 3.7 (a) Fully extended Galileo antenna; (b) unfurled SMAP mesh reflec...

Figure 3.8 Deployable mesh reflector antenna used during the Apollo 11, 12, ...

Figure 3.9 (a) Apollo 17 LRV and astronaut Eugene Cernan on the moon. The hi...

Figure 3.10 (a) Integrated and stowed AENEAS antenna; (b) fully deployed AEN...

Figure 3.11 Geometry of a parabolic reflector.

Figure 3.12 (a) Cassegrain reflector antenna; (b) Gregorian reflector antenn...

Figure 3.13 Why a Cassegrain design? A Cassegrainian design limits the numbe...

Figure 3.14 Optimized Cassegrain reflector antenna design dimensions.

Figure 3.15 (a) Multiflare horn antenna feed design (dimensions in mm); (b) ...

Figure 3.16 Radiation pattern of the optimized multiflare horn feed providin...

Figure 3.17 (a) Reflection coefficient measurement set‐up of the multiflare ...

Figure 3.18 Gain loss as a function of d

sub

/D for an Edge Taper of −11.5 dB ...

Figure 3.19 Radiation pattern of the ideal parabolic reflector at 35.75 GHz ...

Figure 3.20 Defocusing effect of gores. The focal point of the umbrella refl...

Figure 3.21 Comparison of the optimal feed position for obtained using POPRA...

Figure 3.22 Comparison of the gain loss improvement after optimizing the fee...

Figure 3.23 Comparison of the radiation pattern after optimizing the feed po...

Figure 3.24 De‐focusing effect using 30 ribs. The subreflector is re‐focused...

Figure 3.25 Photograph of the feed horn with its three struts holding the su...

Figure 3.26 Struts effect on the side lobe levels and cross‐polarization.

Figure 3.27 Mesh reflectivity loss for different mesh type of meshes (10, 20...

Figure 3.28 Mesh grid described using two orthogonal wires.

Figure 3.29 Photography of two mesh with different OPI: (a) 40‐OPI mesh; (b)...

Figure 3.30 Gain loss versus surface RMS for different frequency bands: S‐ba...

Figure 3.31 Antenna prototypes in the near‐field anechoic chamber of NASA's ...

Figure 3.32 Measured and calculated radiation pattern of (a) the gore‐shaped...

Figure 3.33 Comparison of the radiation pattern after two deployments. Dashe...

Figure 3.34 Deployment sequence of the reflector antenna. The antenna is ini...

Figure 3.35 A motorized lead screw deployment requires four synchronized lea...

Figure 3.36 Deployment sequence of the reflector antenna using a motor and l...

Figure 3.37 Vibration testing of the antenna resulted in loads over 100 G's....

Figure 3.38 Thermal test profile of the antenna alone (a) and then of the an...

Figure 3.39 Image of deployment in thermal vacuum at 0 °C (cold finger and h...

Figure 3.40 Antenna after thermal vacuum testing at both hot and cold. The t...

Figure 3.41 RainCube antenna deployment in low Earth orbit.

Figure 3.42 CAD model of the RainCube spacecraft. All antennas are indicated...

Figure 3.43 UHF coverage map for RainCube. The two stations considered are l...

Figure 3.44 S‐Band coverage map for RainCube. The four K‐Sat stations consid...

Chapter 4

Figure 4.1 One‐meter deployable reflectarray antenna compatible with 6U‐clas...

Figure 4.2 (a) 1 m X‐band pressure stabilized reflectarray

[9]

. (b) 3 m Ka‐b...

Figure 4.3 (a) ISARA 3U CubeSat with its three‐panel reflectarray antenna fu...

Figure 4.4 (a) MarCO reflectarray antenna deployed during integration and te...

Figure 4.5 Radiation pattern measurement of SWOT's engineering model reflect...

Figure 4.6 Feed horn with its three telescoping waveguides in (a) folded con...

Figure 4.7 Feed horn mechanical features for an accurate deployment in x‐, y...

Figure 4.8 Feed deployment occurring after the panel deployment.

Figure 4.9 Feed horn geometry and dimensions in mm.

Figure 4.10 Calculated and measured reflection coefficient of the feed‐horn ...

Figure 4.11 Telescoping feed horn radiation pattern at 35.75 GHz at (a) φ = ...

Figure 4.12 (a) Required wrapped phase delay of all elements of the proposed...

Figure 4.13 Reflectarray panel layout.

Figure 4.14 Deployable reflectarray antenna panel layout. Cutouts and gaps i...

Figure 4.15 (a) Deployment angle definition employed to perform a detailed m...

Figure 4.16 Custom made hinges with adjustability features. The adjustable e...

Figure 4.17 Six‐panel deployment with an offloading mechanism to simulate we...

Figure 4.18 Photography of the prototype tested in JPL's near field planar r...

Figure 4.19 The final adjusted reflectarray surface profile. The units on th...

Figure 4.20 Measured and calculated radiation pattern of the one-meter refle...

Chapter 5

Figure 5.1 RainCube nadir Ka‐band reflectivity shown overlaid on TEMPEST‐D 1...

Figure 5.2 Evolution of CubeSat reflectarray antennas. (a) ISARA [5]. (b) Ma...

Figure 5.3 ESA's 12U CubeSat M‐Argo using a deployable reflectarray antenna ...

Figure 5.4 Mars NanoOrbiter concept.

Figure 5.5 Tendeg Ka‐band mesh antenna for CubeSats (not all tension ties sh...

Figure 5.6 Deployment sequence of the Tendeg Ka‐band 1 m prototype reflector...

Figure 5.7 Cross sections studied: (a) double omega; (b) carpenter tape; (c)...

Figure 5.8 1 m reflector hub and motor assembly.

Figure 5.9 Prototype reflector batten assembly.

Figure 5.10 Prototype reflector net design.

Figure 5.11 Tendeg boom design.

Figure 5.12 Boom deployment sequence.

Figure 5.13 Full deployment showing feed and bore illumination.

Figure 5.14 One‐meter deployable mesh reflector optics and dimensions.

Figure 5.15 Mesh reflector antenna model including the mesh reflector, deplo...

Figure 5.16 Mesh reflector surface accuracy measurement demonstrating a surf...

Figure 5.17 Dual frequency X‐band feed with LHCP polarization. Dimensions ar...

Figure 5.18 Calculated and measured reflection coefficient of the X‐band fee...

Figure 5.19 Normalized X‐band feed radiation pattern at 7.1675 GHz. — LHCP. ...

Figure 5.20 Normalized X‐band feed radiation pattern at 8.425 GHz. — LHCP. ‐...

Figure 5.21 Gain loss versus surface rms at X‐band.

Figure 5.22 X‐band mesh reflector in the near field anechoic chamber with it...

Figure 5.23 X‐band mesh reflector radiation pattern at (a) 7.1675 GHz and (b...

Figure 5.24 (a) Ka‐band feed horn dimensions in mm. The phase center of the ...

Figure 5.25 The OMT polarizer reflection coefficient of LHCP port and isolat...

Figure 5.26 Gain loss versus surface rms at Ka‐band. Note that the mesh surf...

Figure 5.27 Calculated radiation pattern of the Ka‐band mesh reflector. — RH...

Figure 5.28 Measured and calculated radiation pattern of the Ka‐band mesh re...

Figure 5.29 Illustration of (a) uniform hexagonal mesh reflector and (b) non...

Chapter 6

Figure 6.1 Inflatable antenna prototype tested in anechoic chamber.

Figure 6.2 Rendering of the concept of a back‐up inflatable antenna on board...

Figure 6.3 NASA Echo‐I balloon project tested on the ground.

Figure 6.4 Inflatable antenna experiment on board the STS‐77.

Figure 6.5 Schematic of the concept based on Cadogan [10]. The numbers indic...

Figure 6.6 Schematic of the second design. The numbers indicates: (1) reflec...

Figure 6.7 Two shapes (conical and cylindrical) were compared in designing t...

Figure 6.8 Inflatable antenna manufacturing and petals bonding on the reflec...

Figure 6.9 Vacuum chamber test performed on the S‐Band prototype. The inflat...

Figure 6.10 Inflatable antenna deployment test 15.

Figure 6.11 Inflatable antenna concept. The antenna is composed of a transpa...

Figure 6.12 Inflatable antenna at X‐Band tested at the anechoic chamber of t...

Figure 6.13 Inflatable antenna photogrammetry test. Black and silver targets...

Figure 6.14 New inflatable antenna configuration. The antenna is designed as...

Figure 6.15 Gain and feed displacement for a 71.3 cm reflector.

Figure 6.16 Radiation pattern of the inflatable antenna for two different va...

Figure 6.17 Inflatable antenna prototype inflated at Morehead State Universi...

Figure 6.18 Pressure control system developed to maintain the antenna at the...

Figure 6.19 Setup of the inflatable antenna in the anechoic chamber at Moreh...

Figure 6.20 Block diagram of the anechoic chamber test chamber equipment use...

Figure 6.21 Inflatable antenna pattern comparison for different pressure val...

Figure 6.22 Original and deformed shapes makes geometry challenging.

Figure 6.23 Antenna deformation vs. antenna pressure was highly variable.

Figure 6.24 A flat surface on the antenna achieved a better surface than a c...

Figure 6.25 Simulations of the deformed antenna could be created, but were h...

Figure 6.26 Equilibrium pressure for benzoic acid.

Figure 6.27 Sublimation process in case of punctured membrane.

Figure 6.28 Results of the sublimating powder study.

Figure 6.29 Inflatable antenna inflation process [18].

Figure 6.30 Pressure profile over time for the different inflation stages....

Figure 6.31 UV resins applied to the inflatable antenna membrane [19].

Figure 6.32 Rigidization sequence. The antenna is vacuumed, membrane is infl...

Figure 6.33 Test setup 19.

Figure 6.34 Stable behavior.

Figure 6.35 Unstable behavior.

Chapter 7

Figure 7.1 An artist's concept of a potential Europa Lander with the all‐met...

Figure 7.2 The prototype 8 × 8 patch array designed to survive harsh environ...

Figure 7.3 The prototype 8 × 8 patch array designed to survive harsh environ...

Figure 7.4 A dual‐polarized W‐band metal patch antenna element for phased ar...

Figure 7.5 RUAG Space has developed array elements at L‐ and S‐band for Mobi...

Figure 7.6 Photography of the high gain antenna on the Curiosity Rover on Ma...

Figure 7.7 Photography of the radial line slot array.

Figure 7.8 Circularly polarized patch array antenna using thick dielectric 5...

Figure 7.9 Ka‐band modulated metasurface antennas fabricated by metal additi...

Figure 7.10 All‐metal unit cell providing RHCP at Tx and Rx frequency bands ...

Figure 7.11 Calculated reflection coefficient of the optimized single patch ...

Figure 7.12 Simulated electric surface current vectors on the unit cell for ...

Figure 7.13 Exploded view of the 8 × 8 patch array.

Figure 7.14 Air stripline illustration.

Figure 7.15 Bottom view of the 8 × 8 patch array feed network.

Figure 7.16 Stripline feed network with impedance of each striplines.

Figure 7.17 Calculated and measured reflection coefficient of the 8 × 8 patc...

Figure 7.18 Calculated and measured radiation pattern of the 8 × 8 patch arr...

Figure 7.19 Calculated reflection coefficient of the 8 × 8 patch array for v...

Figure 7.20 Calculated realized gain over frequency of the 8 × 8 array.

Figure 7.21 Calculated axial ratio over frequency of the 8 × 8 array.

Chapter 8

Figure 8.1 Shared aperture metasurface antenna with dual beam pattern operat...

Figure 8.2 SEM pictures of the circularly‐polarized MTS antenna operating at...

Figure 8.3 Ka‐band modulated metasurface antenna fabricated by metal additiv...

Figure 8.4 Curves for: (a) β

SW

; (b) α normalized to k as a function of the m...

Figure 8.5 Flow diagram for the design of modulated MTS antennas.

Figure 8.6 Examples of (a) isotropic printed MTS elements and their three‐di...

Figure 8.7 Pixel synthesis: (a) MTS element and local periodicity assumption...

Figure 8.8 Fully integrated Silicon micromachined receiver 41.

Figure 8.9 Equivalent surface reactance of an infinite array of cylinders on...

Figure 8.10 Metasurface discretization on the aperture of the antenna.

Figure 8.11 Feed for the metasurface antenna with a rectangular waveguide in...

Figure 8.12 Calculated reflection coefficient of the antenna using two full‐...

Figure 8.13 Calculated gain pattern of the antenna in Figure 8.10 in the two...

Figure 8.14 SEM images of the 300 GHz MTS antenna realized with isotropic el...

Figure 8.15 SEM images of the 300 GHz feeder: (a) E‐plane bend and H‐plane p...

Figure 8.16 (a) Calculated; (b) measured radiation patterns (linear componen...

Figure 8.17 Anisotropic MTS surface for the 300 GHz antenna with broadside R...

Figure 8.18 Comparison between the radiation patterns of (a) isotropic and (...

Figure 8.19 Iso‐frequency dispersion contours for the unit cell depicted in ...

Figure 8.20 Maps of (a) X

xx

− X

0

; (b) X

xy

− X

0

; (c) X

yy

− X

0

as a function o...

Figure 8.21 Simulated radiation pattern for the Ka‐band RHCP metal‐only MTS ...

Figure 8.22 (a) Feeding network for the metal‐only MTS antenna at 32 GHz; (b...

Figure 8.23 Antenna mechanical description, with the 3D printed elements in ...

Figure 8.24 Picture of the fabricated Ka‐band all‐metal metasurface antenna....

Figure 8.25 Calculated and measured reflection coefficient of the Ka‐band al...

Figure 8.26 Calculated and measured directivity of the Ka‐band metal‐only MT...

Figure 8.27 Calculated and measured radiation pattern of the Ka‐band metal‐o...

Figure 8.28 Measurement of the metasurface elements of the 20 cm Ka‐band met...

Figure 8.29 Fabricated 20 cm diameter Ka‐band metal‐only antenna.

Figure 8.30 Calculated (in black) and measured (in gray) radiation pattern m...

Figure 8.31 (a) Measured and calculated realized gain; (b) measured efficien...

Figure 8.32 1D holographic metasurface aperture synthesized from a microstri...

Figure 8.33 Design of a 2D holographic metasurface antenna. For the presente...

Figure 8.34 2D holographic metasurface antenna examples: (a) 3D printed near...

Figure 8.35 1D dynamically reconfigurable holographic metasurface antenna fo...

Figure 8.36 Electronically steered radiation patterns of the reconfigurable ...

Figure 8.37 2D dynamically reconfigurable holographic metasurface antenna fo...

Figure 8.38 Pillbox feeding structure of the Si/GaAs metasurface antenna: (a...

Figure 8.39 Developed Si/GaAs quasi‐optical holographic metasurface antenna:...

Figure 8.40 CPW‐SIW conversion at the feeding port (all ports are identical ...

Figure 8.41 SIW horn launched wavefront within the Si substrate: (a) amplitu...

Figure 8.42 Reflection coefficient of the CPW‐SIW feeding port.

Figure 8.43 Conversion from (a) the SIW horn launched cylindrical wavefront ...

Figure 8.44 Photography of: (a) the Si layer; (b) the GaAs layer of the fabr...

Figure 8.45 Simulated S‐parameter results for the W‐band metasurface antenna...

Figure 8.46 Radiation patterns for each feed showing the desired beam steeri...

Figure 8.47 Calculated and measured radiation patterns for feed 1: (a) E‐pla...

Figure 8.48 (a) 3D view of the antenna with a description of the pillbox, PP...

Figure 8.49 S‐parameters of the improved passive metasurface using metal str...

Figure 8.50 Beam pointing for different horn position.

Guide

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Table of Contents

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IEEE Press

445 Hoes Lane

Piscataway, NJ 08854

IEEE Press Editorial Board

Ekram Hossain, Editor in Chief

Jón Atli Benediktsson

 David Alan Grier

 Elya B. Joffe

Xiaoou Li

Peter Lian

Andreas Molisch

Saeid Nahavandi

Jeffrey Reed

Diomidis Spinellis

Sarah Spurgeon

Ahmet Murat Tekalp

CubeSat Antenna Design

Edited by

Dr. Nacer Chahat

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory/CaliforniaInstitute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA

Copyright © 2021 by The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging‐in‐Publication Data applied for

Hardback: 9781119692584

Cover Design: Wiley

Cover Image: Courtesy NASA/JPL‐Caltech

Preface

This book presents an overview of CubeSat antennas designed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The objective of this book is to share the knowledge with undergraduate students, graduate students, and engineers all around the world. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory initiated a wave of innovation on deployable antennas for CubeSats enabling a new class of missions ranging from Low Earth Orbit to Deep Space missions.

The first chapter presents a brief introduction of CubeSats. It also provides an exhaustive overview of existing CubeSat antennas organized into three categories: low gain, medium gain, and high gain antennas. An emphasis on the selection of high gain antennas is provided for CubeSat missions depending on the requirements and constraints. As the reader might not be familiar with the design of spacecraft antennas, key information on the effect of space environment (i.e. radiation environment, material outgassing, temperature, and multipacting breakdown) on antennas is provided as these additional constraints drive the antenna design.

The second chapter describes the telecommunication subsystem of Mars Cube One (MarCO) mission with a focus on the antenna development. The requirements for each antenna is described and explained in the context of the mission, which helps the reader to understand the selection process of each antenna. Multiple antennas are described in this chapter: four X‐band low gain patch antennas, an X‐band high gain reflectarray antenna, and deployable circularly polarized UHF loop antenna. The performance of the reflectarray antenna and UHF antenna was demonstrated on‐orbit. Details on the performance achieved on the ground and in space are provided in this chapter.

The third chapter describes the enabling technology of Radar in a CubeSat (RainCube). The design steps of the deployable mesh reflector operating at Ka‐band are thoroughly described from an electrical and mechanical point of view. The reader will appreciate through this chapter how mechanical and electrical designs are tightly related; one can affect the complexity of the other, and one can simplify the complexity of the other. The telecommunication challenge is also described briefly.

Chapter 4 describes the electrical and mechanical designs of the largest reflectarray compatible with a 6U‐class CubeSat: OMERA (one meter reflectarray antenna). After providing a state of the art of deployable reflectarray, the electrical and mechanical designs of the deployable reflectarray are described in detail.

Chapter 5 describes the development of a one‐meter mesh reflector for telecommunication at X‐ and Ka‐band for deep space missions.

In Chapter 6, an inflatable antenna operating at X‐band is described from an electrical and mechanical point of view with all the challenges associated with operation in space.

In Chapter 7, a novel patch array mainly made of metal is described for use on a CubeSat. This antenna demonstrates extraordinarily high efficiency (>80%) at both uplink and downlink X‐band deep space network. It can also survive high radiation levels and extreme temperatures.

Finally, Chapter 8 describes the design of multiple metasurface antennas. While metasurface antennas have never flown in space, JPL is advancing the technology readiness of metasurface antennas with the objective of infusing this technology in future space missions. This chapter describes the advantage and drawbacks of these antennas. Innovative metasurface antenna concepts are described in detail.

Nacer Chahat

Pasadena, CA

January 2019

Editor Biography

Dr. Nacer Chahat (S'09–M'12–SM'15) received master's degree in electrical engineering from the École supérieure d'ingénieurs de Rennes (ESIR), Rennes, France, in 2009 and master's degree in telecommunication and PhD degree in signal processing and telecommunications from the Institute of Electronics and Telecommunications of Rennes (IETR), University of Rennes 1, Rennes, France, in 2009 and 2012, respectively. He is a senior antenna/microwave engineer with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA. Since 2013, he has been a microwave/antenna engineer with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and he became the youngest technical section staff in 2018.

Since he joined NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, he worked on several flight projects: Mars Perseverance and Mars Ingenuity, SWOT, NiSAR, Europa Clipper, Psyche, MarCO, NeaScout, Lunar Flashlight, RainCube, LunaH‐map, Lunar IceCube, BioSentinel, and CUSP.

To cite few of his major contributions, he enabled the first active radar in a CubeSat, Raincube, by co‐inventing the Ka‐band deployable mesh reflector. This patented technology was since then licensed and is now commercially available. He also co-invented the iconic deployable reflectarray antenna for the first interplanetary CubeSat, MarCO, which enabled real‐time communication relay during Insight's Entry, Decent, and Landing. More recently, his patented metal‐only high‐gain antenna technology made it possible to have a direct‐to‐Earth communication channel from the Europa lander mission concept which otherwise would have not been possible. He also played a critical role in delivering the telecommunication subsystem for the Mars Perseverance and Mars Ingenuity missions which will attempt the first helicopter flight on the red planet. From 2018 to 2020, he was Product Delivery Manager for the SWOT High Power Amplifier. Since January 2020, he is the Payload System Engineer lead on the SWOT mission.

He has authored and coauthored more than 100 technical journal articles and conference papers, has written four book chapters, and also holds 5 patents. His research interests include deployable antennas for CubeSat and small satellites, spacecraft antennas for telecommunications, RADAR, imaging systems, metasurface antennas, and metasurface beam steering antennas.

Dr. Chahat was the recipient of the 2011 CST University Publication Award, the 2011 Best Paper Award from the Bioelectromagnetics Society, and the IEEE Antenna and Propagation Society Doctoral Research Award in 2012. He was awarded the best PhD of University of Rennes by the Foundation of Rennes 1. In 2013, he received the best PhD thesis prize in France in electrical engineering awarded by club EEA (Enseignants et des chercheurs en Electronique, Electrotechnique et Automatique). In 2013, he was awarded the Airbus Group Foundation's Best Thesis Prize in France. In 2015, he received a French Early Career Award for Engineer and Scientist (Prix Bretagne Jeune Chercheur) for his significant scientific contribution in his early career.

In 2017, he received the IEEE A. Schelkunoff Transactions Prize Paper Award for his paper on the innovative deployable Ka‐band mesh reflector which enabled the RainCube mission. In 2017, he also received the prestigious Lew Allen Award for Excellence awarded by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory “for demonstrated unique talent as a leader in rapid spacecraft antenna development and telecom systems engineering.” In 2018, he was awarded the Future Technology Leader Award by the Engineers' Council and the NASA Early Career Achievement Medal by the United States government and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Notes on Contributors

Dr. Manan Arya received his BASc in engineering science from the University of Toronto in 2011, and his PhD and MSc in space engineering from the California Institute of Technology in 2012 and 2016, respectively. His interests include the origami‐inspired design of deployable spacecraft structures and ultralight ultrathin composite materials. He joined JPL in 2016 to support the Starshade technology development effort and has been involved in the development of deployable RF antenna reflectors for small satellites.

Dr. Alessandra Babuscia received her BS and MS degrees from the Politecnico di Milano and her PhD degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, in 2012. She is currently Telecommunication Engineer in the Flight Communications Section at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. She is PI for the Inflatable Antenna for CubeSat project; telecom system engineer for Mars2020 and Europa Lander missions; telecom lead engineer for ASTERIA, LunaH‐Map, and RainCube missions; telecom chair lead for JPL TeamXc, and involved in many CubeSat mission design concepts and proposals. Her current research interests include communication architecture design, statistical risk estimation, inflatable antennas, and communication system design for small satellites and CubeSats.

Dr. Goutam Chattopadhyay is a Senior Research Scientist at the NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, and a Visiting Associate at the Division of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, USA. He received his PhD degree in electrical engineering from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Pasadena, in 2000. He is a Fellow of IEEE (USA) and IETE (India) and an IEEE Distinguished Lecturer. His research interests include microwave, millimeter‐wave, and terahertz receiver systems and radars, and applications of nanotechnology at terahertz frequencies. He has more than 300 publications in international journals and conferences and holds more than 15 patents. He has also received more than 35 NASA technical achievement and new technology invention awards. He received the IEEE Region 6 Engineering of the Year Award in 2018 and Distinguished Alumni Award from the Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST), India, in 2017. He was the recipient of the best journal paper award in 2013 by IEEE Transactions on Terahertz Science and Technology, best paper award for antenna design and applications at the European Antennas and Propagation Conference (EuCAP) in 2017, and IETE Prof. S. N. Mitra Memorial Award in 2014.

Dr. Tom Cwik leads the space technology development at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, as well as leading tech development for the exploration of ocean worlds. He was formerly Associate Chief Technologist at JPL. He received his bachelor's, master's, and doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana‐Champaign. He joined JPL in 1988 working in a range of advanced engineering and project activities including antenna design, instrument development, and high‐performance computing focused on high‐fidelity modeling of instrument and electromagnetic systems.

His previous position includes leading the JPL Earth Science Instruments & Technology Office. He led proposal development of the Earth‐observing mission Aquarius/SAC‐D NASA Earth System Pathfinder mission to measure sea surface salinity. Tom has supervised the High‐Performance Computing Group at JPL and has worked in engineering positions across a range of tasks and projects starting with the Cassini Mission, the Deep Space Network, and a long‐term funded effort from the Special Projects Office of the Air Force that originated the field of large‐scale parallel computing in computational electromagnetics and design.

Tom is an IEEE Fellow, an Associate Fellow of the AIAA, a Principal Member at JPL, and an Affiliate Professor at the University of Washington, Department of Electrical Engineering, Seattle, WA. He was named a 2012 Distinguished Alumni of the University of Illinois, ECE Department, Urbana, IL. He has written 8 book chapters and over 30 refereed journal papers. He holds two US patents. He has consulted with industry and has been cofounder and part of start‐up companies in a variety of fields.

Dr. Emmanuel Decrossas received the BS and MS with honors in materials science and electrical engineering from the université Pierre et Marie Curie Paris‐6, Paris, France, in 2004 and 2006, respectively. In 2012, he received his PhD from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, in electrical engineering. He has authored and coauthored over 40 technical journal articles, conference papers, and invited talks; has written one book chapter; and holds over five patents. Emmanuel Decrossas was awarded the NASA postdoctoral fellowship given annually to only 60 postdoctoral candidates worldwide, based on the scientific merit of proposed research, academic, and research record in 2012. Although he joined JPL only in 2015, he has already delivered a large amount of flight hardware for Mars CubeSat One (MARCO), Sentinel‐6 (ex JASON‐CS), and Cold Atom Laboratory (CAL). He is currently developing the high‐power feed absorber cover for SWOT Karin instrument (2000 W peak) and the antennas for EUROPA REASON radar‐sounder instruments. Dr. Decrossas is a member of the electrical engineering honor society Eta Kappa Nu, IEEE. In 2017, he received the Charles Elachi award for outstanding early‐career achievement in the development of innovative antenna designs making missions successful. Dr. Decrossas also received the prestigious NASA early career medal in 2018 for early‐career achievement developing innovative spacecraft antennas, enabling novel space instruments and telecom systems in support of NASA's research mission.

Gregg Freebury received his MS degree in Aero‐Astro Engineering from Stanford University in 1985. He is the founder and CEO of Tendeg and has over 30 years of experience in aerospace, satellite and aircraft vehicle design, analysis, and test. Before starting Tendeg, he held senior engineering positions in Northrop and consulted specifically in the space deployable field for over 20 years. He has designed and developed numerous commercial products and been awarded six patents related to space deployables.

M. Michael Kobayashi received his BS in Electrical Engineering (2006) and MS in Electrical and Computer Engineering (2007) from the University of California, Irvine, and joined the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 2007 as an RF Microwave Engineer. He has worked on various microwave flight hardware deliveries such as the Ka‐band up/down converter for the Terminal Descent Sensor of the Curiosity Mars Rover and the 550 W L‐band transmitter for the Soil Moisture Active Passive mission. Recent work focuses on space‐borne software‐defined radio and transponder development including the Iris Deep‐Space Transponder, the Universal Space Transponder, and the high‐rate Ka‐band Modulator for the NASA/ISRO SAR (NISAR) mission. He has been involved in various telecom and radio support activities for JPL CubeSat projects such as INSPIRE, MarCO, and the EM‐1 CubeSat missions. Currently, he serves as the payload system engineer for the NISAR project to develop the high‐rate Ka‐band communications system to downlink 26 Terabits/day of science and engineering data from low‐Earth orbit.

Dr. David González‐Ovejero was born in Gandía, Spain, in 1982. He received the telecommunication engineering degree from the Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Valencia, Spain, in 2005, and the PhD degree in electrical engineering from the Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain‐la‐Neuve, Belgium, in 2012. From 2006 to 2007, he was as a Research Assistant with the Universidad Politécnica de Valencia. In 2007, he joined the Université catholique de Louvain, where he was a Research Assistant until 2012. From 2012 to 2014, he worked as Research Associate at the University of Siena, Siena, Italy. In 2014, he joined the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA, where he was a Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellow until 2016. Since then, he has been a Research Scientist with the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), appointed at the Institut d'Électronique et de Télécommunications de Rennes, France. Dr. González‐Ovejero was a recipient of a Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship from the European Commission 2013, the Sergei A. Schelkunoff Transactions Prize Paper Award from the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society in 2016, and the Best Paper Award in Antenna Design and Applications at the 11th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation in 2017.

Dr. Jonathan Sauder received a BS majoring in Mechanical Engineering from Bradley University in 2009, a MS in Product Development Engineering from the University of Southern California in 2011, and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California in 2013. Prior to joining JPL, he worked in R&D roles for companies including Mattel, Microsoft, Monsanto, and technology startups. He began his career at JPL in 2014 as a technologist. Dr. Sauder is currently a senior mechatronics engineer at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in the Technology Infusion Group, which seeks to bridge the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) “Valley of Death” for innovative concepts. He is the Principle Investigator on a Phase I and Phase II NIAC study “Automaton Rover for Extreme Environments” and also an inventor of several patent pending deployable antennas and the Principle Investigator on several deployable antenna research projects. He was the Mechanical Engineering Lead on the RainCube Spacecraft, and responsible for infusing a new antenna technology, taking it from prototype to flight. He is also a member of NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) Mechanical Systems Technical Discipline Teams (TDT) and lectures at the University of Southern California on Advanced Mechanical Design.

Mark Thomson is an inventor and technology development PI in the field of very large precision deployable structures for space. As Chief engineer in the JPL Division 35 Instrument and Small Spacecraft Mechanical Engineering Section, he has been consulted lab‐wide since 2006 as a deployable structures subject matter expert for mission formulation, development, and implementation. JPL projects include the main radar and radiometer antennas for SMAP, SWOT, NiSAR, Europa, and numerous CubeSats including RainCube. He is currently developing a 40 m diameter class optical Starshade for imaging Earth‐like Exoplanets. Mr. Thomson spends a great deal of his time mentoring the next generation of mechanical engineers at JPL in low‐cost rapid prototyping of large structures and mechanical space systems. At Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems from 1988 to 2006, Mr. Thomson invented and developed the AstroMesh antenna of which 10 have been flown, deployed, and operating on‐orbit with apertures to 12‐m. At NGAS, he also developed the telescoping booms that will deploy the James Webb Space Telescope sunshield and the RadarSat 15‐m deployable L‐band synthetic aperture radar antenna. Mark holds a BS Mechanical Engineering, University of Southern California, 1981, with a minor in Architectural Design.

Dr. Okan Yurduseven received the BSc and MSc degrees in electrical engineering from Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey, in 2009 and 2011, respectively, and the PhD degree in electrical engineering from Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, the United Kingdom in 2014. He is currently a Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) at the Centre for Wireless Innovation (CWI), The Institute of Electronics, Communications and Information, Technology (ECIT), School of Electronics, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EEECS), Queen's University Belfast, UK. He is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Duke University, USA. From 2018 to 2019, he was a NASA Postdoctoral Fellow at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology. From 2014 to 2018, he was a Postdoctoral Research Associate within the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Duke University, working in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. His research interests include microwave and millimeter‐wave imaging, multiple‐input‐multiple‐output (MIMO) radar, wireless power transfer, antennas and propagation, antenna measurement techniques, and metamaterials. He has authored more than 100 peer‐reviewed technical journal and conference articles. He has organized and chaired numerous sessions in international symposiums and conferences, including IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation (AP‐S) and European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (EuCAP). Dr. Yurduseven was the recipient of an Academic Excellence Award from the Association of British – Turkish Academics (ABTA) in London in 2013. He also received a best paper award at the Mediterranean Microwave symposium in 2012 and a travel award from the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET). In 2017, he was awarded a NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) Fellowship administrated by Universities Space Research Association (USRA) under contract with NASA. In 2017, he received an Outstanding Postdoctoral Award from Duke University and a Duke Postdoctoral Professional Development Award. He is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and a member of the European Association on Antennas and Propagation (EurAAP).

Dr. Min Zhou was born in 1984 in Beijing, China. He received the MSc degree in electrical engineering from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Lyngby, Denmark, in 2009, and the PhD degree in 2013 at the same university. In fall 2007, he spent 5 months at the University of Illinois, Urbana‐Champaign, USA. Since 2009, he has been with the Danish company TICRA, Copenhagen, Denmark, where he performs research and development for computational techniques and antennas for space applications as well as software development for TICRA's software packages. His research interest includes computational electromagnetics, antenna theory, and analysis and design techniques for quasi‐periodic surfaces such as reflectarrays and frequency selective surfaces. Dr. Min Zhou received DTU's Young Researcher Award for his PhD work on reflectarrays in 2013. He was also the recipient of the Best Innovative Paper Award at the 36th ESA Antenna Workshop on Antennas and RF Systems for Space Science in 2015.

1Introduction

Nacer Chahat

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA

1.1 Description of CubeSats

1.1.1 Introduction

Our understanding of the universe, solar system, and Earth has significantly changed thanks to the revolution of space‐based observations using large spacecraft such as Voyager, Galileo, and Cassini, to name only a few. Although the science achievement of these missions cannot be presently matched with small satellites, smaller platforms could address targeted science questions in a rapid, and more affordable manner.

A new era for CubeSats has started with the success of Radar In a CubeSat (Raincube) [1] and Mars Cube One (MarCO) [2]. Raincube is the first active radar in a CubeSat. It has successfully demonstrated that an active precipitation radar can fit in a 6U form factor CubeSat and collect valuable atmospheric science. The Raincube CubeSat was released on July 13, 2018 from a NanoRacks deployer outside the International Space Station (ISS). As an example of its accomplishments, Raincube successfully observed typhoon Trami. Tempest‐D, another NASA CubeSat, also observed Trami within 5 minutes. RainCube nadir Ka‐band reflectivity are shown overlaid on TEMPEST‐D 165 GHz brightness temperature in Figure 1.1. This illustrates the capabilities of these small satellites that could potentially be launched in a constellation to unlock unprecedented temporal resolution (i.e. minutes) necessary to observe the evolution of weather phenomena. A potential Raincube Follow‐on mission, intends to launch a constellation of 12U CubeSats, to accommodate a larger deployable antenna for a small radar footprint with increased resolution.

Figure 1.1 (a) Photography of Trami Typhoon taken from the ISS. (b) RainCube nadir Ka‐band reflectivity overlaid on TEMPEST‐D 165 GHz brightness temperature of Typhoon Trami.

The 2018 launch of the InSight lander to Mars, included two 6U twin CubeSats called MarCO. These two CubeSats successfully provided real‐time telecommunication relay during the Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) of the lander. This is also the first CubeSat to travel to another planet, Mars, and operate in Deep Space. Millions of people all over the world witnessed the successful landing of InSight thanks to these two mighty but small spacecraft. Indeed, the first image of Mars landing site taken by Insight (see Figure 1.2) was relayed in real time from the Mars surface to the Earth via the MarCO CubeSat. Without MarCO CubeSats, this picture and play‐by‐play real time EDL events would have not been possible and reconstruction of EDL event data would have been delayed by 2–3 hours.

MarCO and RainCube have paved the way for future small Earth Science and Deep Space spacecraft making interplanetary space science and high performance Earth Science much more affordable and accessible.

In 2021, 13 CubeSats will launch as secondary payloads on the Exploration Mission 1 test flight. Two examples of these missions are Lunar Flashlight [3] and Near‐Earth Asteroid Scout (NeaScout) [4