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ScienceAugust 6, 2026

Antenna Testing for NASA’s SkyFall Mission

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NASA
1d ago
Source: This report is based on an official public release from NASA. PULSE organizes and summarizes public government communications. Read the original release →

SkyFall ground-penetrating radar engineer Maya Román connects a coaxial cable to a test antenna in the Environmental Test Lab’s electromagnetic interference testing chamber at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.

The antenna was pointed up during test to minimize reflections and interferences with the antenna pattern during the measurement.

Equipped with four instruments each, the three SkyFall aircraft will follow in the footsteps of the agency’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, whichflew 72 times over nearly three years, proving that powered, controlled flight is possible in the rarefied Martian atmosphere.

It also demonstrated how an aerial perspective can generate valuable data by helping NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover team plan time-saving routes and choose locations for science-gathering.

SkyFall is expected to launch aboard NASA’sSpace Reactor-1 Freedomin late 2028.

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