First-Ever Deployment Of A Commercial Reflectarray In Orbit: A Technological Breakthrough By Anywaves

Anywaves marks a significant milestone in the space industry by becoming the world’s first commercial equipment provider to deploy a Reflectarray in orbit. This achievement follows Anywaves’ selection by the French Space Agency, CNES, in 2020, to demonstrate the technological feasibility of this type of antenna, tailored for nanosatellites.

The Reflectarray antenna, featuring a deployable configuration and compact form factor, delivers exceptional gain and enhanced reliability through a simple, robust passive deployment mechanism. First used by NASA on the ISARA, MarCO-A, and MarCO-B missions, this type of antenna is now being deployed in orbit by Anywaves. This technical breakthrough enables the use of very high-gain antennas while meeting the size constraints of nanosatellite platforms. The use of foldable flat panels allows for easy storage and transport on small spacecraft.

Paving the way for new high-datarate communication capabilities, the Reflectarray, designed in the Ka-band but adaptable across various frequency bands (from X to Ku, including Q/V), is ideally suited for deployment in satellite constellations. It targets both commercial low Earth orbit missions and exploration missions, representing a major competitive advantage.

With higher antenna gain, satellite operators and integrators can now opt for a more efficient system, either significantly reducing onboard power requirements or substantially increasing data rates. Designed for rapid serial production, the development of this new antenna follows a roadmap aligned with evolving market demands.

The successful deployment in orbit of this Reflectarray is the result of a collaborative effort between several Space players, including COMAT and Nimésis.

It highlights Anywaves’ leadership as an antenna provider and reinforces its key role in the design and production of high-value space antennas.

Through this technological achievement, Anywaves reaffirms its expertise in innovation and positions itself as a leading equipment provider in the global space industry supply chain.

About Anywaves
Anywaves, pure player in the space industry, aims to become the global leader in its market. The company designs, manufactures, and delivers high-performance space antennas and RF payloads worldwide, offering both off-the-shelf and custom solutions. Driven by an innovative industrial vision, Anywaves adopts the highest market standards, including EN 9100 and ISO 27001 certifications. Performance, reliability, and short lead times are at the core of its value proposition. For more information, visit www.anywaves.com