Improving Advanced Aero Cube Missions with a High-Gain Circularly Polarized Metallic Antenna Array

Abstract

This research intends to help in the construction of a metallic patch antenna array for AeroCube missions using 1.5U CubeSat designs. It decides to use a low-profile, all-metal patch antenna array combined with the aluminum box of a 1.5U CubeSat to obtain a very high stiffness configuration for advanced space communication. As a result, the purpose of this research is to develop a unique metallic antenna array arrangement that is welded to the body of the 1.5U CubeSat and designed to deliver a low-cost, low-power, suitable, and high-performance AeroCube antenna system. The constructed antenna array is built of copper and tuned using the Quasi Newtonian Method to give a wide HPBW with a peak gain of around 12.5 dBi at Ka-band. Furthermore, it has a significant return loss and is circularly polarized, although taking up less than half of the 1.5U CubeSat's large face. The suggested metallic antenna array is lightweight and inexpensive, with a particularly stiff construction suitable for usage in space. As a consequence of these successes, advanced AeroCube missions may now be targeted using 1.5U CubeSat designs for very high-resolution CubeSat communication at a low cost and power consumption.