Which description best matches a parabolic antenna?

Which description best matches a parabolic antenna?

• A. Planar
• B. Lobe Switching
• C. Dish reflector, easy, cheap, cluttered
• D. Raster Scan - Snake

Answer: (C)

A parabolic antenna works by using a dish-shaped reflector to gather and focus radio waves into a tight, highly directional beam. The parabolic surface reflects incoming waves to a single focal point where a feed horn sits; the feed then radiates outward, and the dish shapes that energy into a narrow beam with high gain. Because the defining feature is this dish reflector, the description that matches best is a dish reflector—easy and inexpensive to build relative to more complex high-gain options, while providing a strong, focused signal. Other descriptions refer to different ideas: planar would be flat and not create the focused dish pattern; lobe switching and raster scan describe beamforming or scanning methods rather than the fundamental dish construction.

A parabolic antenna works by using a dish-shaped reflector to gather and focus radio waves into a tight, highly directional beam. The parabolic surface reflects incoming waves to a single focal point where a feed horn sits; the feed then radiates outward, and the dish shapes that energy into a narrow beam with high gain. Because the defining feature is this dish reflector, the description that matches best is a dish reflector—easy and inexpensive to build relative to more complex high-gain options, while providing a strong, focused signal.

Other descriptions refer to different ideas: planar would be flat and not create the focused dish pattern; lobe switching and raster scan describe beamforming or scanning methods rather than the fundamental dish construction.