Insider Brief:
- NASA’s radar antenna reflector for the NISAR satellite, a key part of a joint mission with the Indian Space Research Organisation, is almost ready.
- The drum-shaped reflector is about 39 feet (12 meters) across and will help the NISAR satellite send and receive microwave signals from Earth’s surface. NISAR will scan nearly all of Earth’s land and ice surfaces twice every 12 days, gathering important science data.
- After testing, NASA will move the reflector to an ISRO facility in Bengaluru, India. There, teams from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California and ISRO will reintegrate it with the radar system.
According to a recent blog post, NASA’s radar antenna reflector for the NISAR satellite, a key part of a joint mission with the Indian Space Research Organisation, is almost ready and is being tested in California.
The drum-shaped reflector is about 39 feet (12 meters) across and will help the NISAR satellite send and receive microwave signals from Earth’s surface. NISAR will scan nearly all of Earth’s land and ice surfaces twice every 12 days, gathering important science data.
In March, the reflector returned from India to a special facility in California. Reflective tape was applied, and other measures were taken to manage temperature changes that could affect the reflector’s deployment.
After testing, NASA will move the reflector to an ISRO facility in Bengaluru, India. There, teams from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California and ISRO will reintegrate it with the radar system. During this time, ISRO and NASA will set a launch readiness date.
The NISAR launch window from early October 2024 to early February 2025 is no longer possible. During this time, alternating sunlight and shadows could cause temperature changes that might impact the deployment of the boom and radar antenna reflector.
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
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