Simone Pacetti
Design of Ultralight Inflatable Antenna for Low Earth Orbit: Lorentz Force-Based Orientation Feasibility study.
Rel. Raffaella Sesana, Ladislau Matekovits. Politecnico di Torino, Master of science program in Mechanical Engineering, 2025
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Abstract
This thesis investigates the preliminary feasibility study of a new class of ultra-light inflatable antennas with a large transmitting and receiving surface composed of metallized fabric. These antennas are designed for deployment in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), at approximately 2000 km altitude from sea level. The orientation is controlled through the interaction between the Earth’s magnetic field and electric currents induced within conductive elements embedded in the antenna’s structure. This innovative control method eliminates the need for traditional mechanical actuators or booms, reducing complexity, mass, and transportation cost to space, while increasing operational efficiency. A critical challenge associated with inflatable antennas is deployment and ensuring structural integrity of the membrane.
Historical NASA experiments with inflatable space antennas were conducted in the 20th century, revealing a high failure rate due to uncontrolled inflation in vacuum conditions, leading to sudden structural collapse
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