Airbus Defence and Space has delivered the X-band active receive antenna for integration on Hisdesat’s SpainSat-NG I communications satellite, at the company’s facilities in Toulouse, France, from Airbus in Spain, where it was developed and qualified.
This antenna system, comprising the receive antenna and the X-band active transmit antenna delivered in May 2024, provides the equivalent functionality of 16 traditional antennas. It will ensure reliable communications between the satellite and ground stations via X-band used for governmental and military communications.
The SpainSat-NG I active antenna system will allow it to switch between different coverage zones thousands of times per second, known as beam-hopping, and its direct radiating array will enable it to eliminate and geo-locate attempts at jamming with high accuracy.
The antenna’s coverage and performance can be dynamically adapted to the needs of the mission through an intelligent combination of hundreds of different signals controlled by a software tool on the ground and without any moving parts.
The delivery of SpainSat NG I to Hisdesat is scheduled for the end of 2024, being currently the most advanced satellite of its kind in Europe.
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