Matching Space Antenna Deformation Electronic Compensation Strategies to Support Structure Architectures

Radar systems are engineered to achieve a complex, yet functional, balance between diverse subsystems and competing requirements. One important trade for large deployable space radar antennas is between antenna dimensional stability and electronic signal processing for deformation compensation. This trade is first investigated for several different electronic compensation methods, and compensation capabilities are mapped into structural requirements. Second the structural requirements are translated into appropriate structural architectures. The scope of this study is limited to space radar systems, where loads causing antenna deformations differ significantly from terrestrial systems. Compensation strategies that allow structural requirements to be reduced by several orders of magnitude are identified. When considered early in the systems engineering process, the methods presented herein can be used to form a rationale for the selection and the development of a complementary combination of compensation electronics and structural architectures.