Structural and electromagnetic design considerations for very large space antennas

This paper describes the design and analysis of a 24-element dipole array which serves as an optimized feed structure for a 150-meter cruciform reflector antenna for satellite communications in the 1–2 GHz range. The radiation pattern for this structure was calculated using a Method of Moments based computational electromagnetics code yielding an overall 47 dBi reflector gain. The effect of incorporating this optimized feed is an overall performance improvement on an initial cruciform reflector antenna design by minimizing spillover and undesirable side lobes. Performance versus size-and-weight tradeoffs are discussed as is a detailed description of the cruciform antenna's mechanical design and its resultant RF characteristics.