Performance Analysis of the UHF Relay Antennas for the Mars Sample Return Sample Retrieval Lander

This work summarizes the preliminary analysis of the radio link between two Ultra High Frequency (UHF) antennas located on the deck the Sample Retrieval Lander (SRL) and a UHF antenna on the Earth Return Orbiter (ERO) in orbit around Mars. The lander and the orbiter form part of the planned Mars Sample Return campaign. The focus here is to analyze the two SRL antennas performance whose operations are impacted by the presence of the lander deck and the various items mounted there, the solar panels that are deployed around the perimeter of the lander, and the Martian terrain. In this study, the antenna radiation patterns in the presence of several configurations of the SRL’s scattering environment are computed. These radiation patterns are then used to determine the characteristics of the link performance between the lander and the orbiter.