Inflatable Antennae Could Give Tiny Satellites Better Communication Reach

Technology is getting smaller and smaller these days--and that includes satellite technology. Scientists have created satellites the size of a shoebox known as "CubeSats," which makes space exploration more accessible. Now, researchers have developed inflatable antennae that could give these satellites a far greater reach when it comes to communication.

Communicating across vast distances has long remained an issue for tiny satellites. Long, far-ranging radio dishes are impossible to store within the tight quarters of a CubeSat. That's why in the past these satellites have been equipped with smaller, less powerful antennae. This, in turn, has restricted their orbits below those of my geosynchronous satellites.

That's why the researchers developed the new antenna. It's inflatable, which means that it can be folded into a compact space and then inflate when in orbit. This allows the CubeSat to maintain its tiny body while still having far-ranging communications.

"With this antenna you could transmit from the moon, and even farther than that," said Alessandra Babuscia, one of the researchers, in a news release. "This antenna is one of the cheapest and most economical solutions to the problem of communications."

So how does the new antenna work? In order for it to inflate, the researchers rely on sublimating powder. This chemical compound can transform from a solid powder to a gas when exposed to low pressure. Once in space, the difference in pressure triggers a chemical reaction that inflates the antenna.

Being able to inflate was just one of the issues, though. The researchers also had to make sure that the satellite transmitted well. The scientists tested the electromagnetic properties in radiation simulations of both the conical and cylindrical designs that they created. In the end, they found that the cylindrical design performed better and transmitted data about 10 times faster and seven times further than existing CubeSat antennae.

That's not to say that these antennae are infallible. They could be vulnerable to debris in space. For example, micrometeroids could puncture a balloon and cause leaks. This, in turn, could drastically affect an antenna's performance.

"In the end, what's going to make the success of the CubeSat communications will be a lot of different ideas, and the ability of engineers to find the right solution for each mission," said Babuscia, in a news release. "So inflatable antennae could be for a spacecraft going by itself to an asteroid. For another problem, you'd need another solution. But all this research builds a set of options to allow these spacecraft, made directly by universities, to fly in deep space."

The findings are published in the journal Acta Astronautica.