Curved (Convex) Surface Global Positioning System (GPS) Antenna Design for Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) Trident D5 Flight Test Reentry

Capturing GPS data during reentry flight tests will reduce the effort required to recreate a trajectory after flight. In order to test a more representative reentry body, an antenna will be designed that accounts for a rounded aft surface. Toyon Research Corporation proposes designing a conformal antenna that operates at L1/L2 GPS frequencies with sufficient bandwidth to support military codes. The antenna gain pattern will be customized to maximize the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the GPS signal in the presence of plasma. Maximum SNR will be achieved by optimizing the antenna pattern in such a way as to increase the available GPS signal while decreasing reflections from the plasma. Design challenges will include accounting for antenna-to-plasma interactions and changing material properties due to high reentry temperatures. Toyon will also develop specialized GPS algorithms for advanced antenna electronics that will provide capabilities that are not currently available to military and civilian systems. Toyon’s team has direct experience with designing and building flight-qualified antennas, GPS receivers, navigation algorithms, and reentry bodies and systems.