Antenna Testing for NASA’s SkyFall Mission

SkyFall ground-penetrating radar engineer Maya Román connects a coaxial cable to a test antenna inside the Environmental Test Lab’s electromagnetic interference chamber at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. During the measurement, the antenna was pointed upward to reduce reflections and interference with the antenna pattern. Three SkyFall aircraft, each equipped with four instruments, will build on lessons from the agency’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, which flew 72 times over nearly three years and proved powered, controlled flight in the thin Martian atmosphere. Ingenuity also provided aerial data that helped the Perseverance rover team plan routes and select science locations. SkyFall is expected to launch aboard NASA’s Space Reactor-1 Freedom in late 2028.