There are times when a mechanism comes to your attention that you have to watch time and time again, to study its intricacies and marvel at the skill of its designer. Sometimes it can be a complex mechanism such as a musical automaton or a mechanical loom, but other times it can be a device whose apparent simplicity hides its underlying cleverness. Such a moment came for us today, and it’s one we have to share with you.
RainCube is a satellite, as its name suggests in the CubeSat form factor and carrying radar instruments to study Earthly precipitation. One of the demands of its radar system is a parabolic dish antenna, and even at its 37.5 GHz that antenna needs to be significantly larger than its 6U CubeSat chassis.
It is the JPL engineers’ solution to this problem that is the beautiful mechanism we want to show you. The parabola is folded within itself and tightly furled round the feedhorn within the body of the satellite. As the feedhorn emerges, first the inner sections unfurl and then the outer edge of the parabola springs out to form the dish antenna shape. Simultaneously a mechanism of simplicity, cleverness, and beauty, one we’d be very proud of if it were our creation.
There is nothing new in collapsible parabolas used in spacecraft antennas, petal and umbrella-like designs have been a feature of some of the most famous craft. But the way that this one has been fitted into such a small space (and so elegantly) makes it special, we hope you’ll agree.
[via space.com]
Awesome!
What would the umbrella be covered with, aluminium?
I think gold foil is common on this kind of things because the high ductility means that it’s less likely to tear itself to pieces while moving.
Yeah, it specifies ‘gold mesh’ but it can’t be 100% gold.
Aaaanyway, forget space, I need a pop-out wifi antenna for my phone!
(Somebody please do this, I will throw money at it.)
Reminds me a bit of Iris and Hoberman and other related Mechanisms.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clQNFPAB8s8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ays6km1CzCs
“One of the demands of its radar system is a parabolic dish antenna, and even at its 37.5 GHz that antenna needs to be significantly larger than its 6U CubeSat chassis.”
At it’s 37.5 GHz……. frequency?
Sure, less sdr clowns… :-D
The higher the frequency, the smaller antenna size is required to achieve the same gain….
Mechanical Origami.
Pretty similar to the Communotron 88-88 from Kerbal Space Program. I’m sure they thought of it before JPL ;)
Well, don’t forget the Galileo’s antenna (which failed to deploy)
I wonder if NASA ever considered building a small, one purpose robotic craft designed just to go out and un-jam Cassini’s high gain antenna?
With it being very small and light, it could’ve been launched much faster to get out there quicker than Cassini did. After popping the antenna free, its camera (preferably a full color one at the highest resolution available at the time) could be used to take photos of Saturn and its surroundings to send back.
Very nice. It can make one think, a nice thing about manufacturing in space will be not needing the complexity of launchable systems.
Here’s hoping it works better than on Galileo.
Reminds me of your very common and average umbrella.
But like Apple, if JPL does it it’s uhm innovative?
Me watching the gif: Whats so special about *Doink!* ….Bahahaha!
Lol, yeah. I kept staring at it!
*fwoooosh!!!*