Effects of Inflated Cone on Satellite Radar Cross Sections in S-Band via FDTD Simulations

Satellites are the most important link in today's battlefield, and with the advancement of anti-satellite technologies such as anti-satellite missiles and directed energy weapons, satellites are becoming vulnerable to attack. The vulnerability of a satellite depends greatly on the probability of it being detected and tracked, and optics and radars are the two main means of detection. To avoid detection, several suggestions have been made in the past to deflect ambient light and decrease the RCS (radar cross section). The most notable RF stealth suggestion among them is the proposal of using an inflatable polymer cone to change its shape and reduce the satellite's RCS. In this study we examine the accuracy of a commercial FDTD code with a theoretical Mie scattering RCS, and use it to calculate the RCS of this so-called stealth satellite in the S-band, and analyze its frequency and radar incident angle dependence. Results indicate that this shape is advantageous in boresight monostatic backscatter RCS reduction, but in other directions the RCS increases due to the sheer size effect, which makes it even more vulnerable to bi-static radar tracking. When it is slant illuminated, the RCS of the stealth satellite shows no RCS reduction effects. This inflated device is susceptible to space debris damage and cumbersome to operate, and may interfere with the original mission of the satellite. The best strategy for satellite self-defense is orbit change.