E-Sail suggestions
There was a new Space Craft propulsion system invented in 2005 by Dr Pekka Janhunen, called E-Sail (not to be confused with solar sail). NASA is setting up a test project called Herts for it, and maybe has modified it from its single strand to multi strand configuration. It has such low power it can not transmit its data from long distances but needs to return to earth to down load its 3 year cache. I an thinking the multi strand may also be used as an antenna with gain and direction.
Note that a similar technique suggested for the balloon antenna might be applied here. The transmitter "feed" would need to radiate in narrow "bands at staggered times so they arrive at the wire reflectors in proper phase. This is because a single point transmitter feed signal would not get to the reflector in sync with more distant circumferential rings. it takes the signal longer to get to the outside of the wires than the inside.
The "wires" would also need nano-reflectors aimed such that the phased signal was reflected back to earth. Basically you are making a Fresnel lens with the wires reflectors.
There was a new Space Craft propulsion system invented in 2005 by Dr Pekka Janhunen, called E-Sail (not to be confused with solar sail). NASA is setting up a test project called Herts for it, and maybe has modified it from its single strand to multi strand configuration. It has such low power it can not transmit its data from long distances but needs to return to earth to down load its 3 year cache. I an thinking the multi strand may also be used as an antenna with gain and direction.
Note that a similar technique suggested for the balloon antenna might be applied here. The transmitter "feed" would need to radiate in narrow "bands at staggered times so they arrive at the wire reflectors in proper phase. This is because a single point transmitter feed signal would not get to the reflector in sync with more distant circumferential rings. it takes the signal longer to get to the outside of the wires than the inside.
The "wires" would also need nano-reflectors aimed such that the phased signal was reflected back to earth. Basically you are making a Fresnel lens with the wires reflectors.