Measurement of small antenna reflector losses for radiometer calibration budget

Antenna reflector losses play an important role in the calibration budget for a microwave radiometer. If the losses are small, they are difficult to measure by traditional means. However, they can be assessed directly by radiometric means using the sky brightness temperature as incident radiation. This paper describes how such measurements are carried out as well as a suitable experimental setup. The main reflector of the European Space Agency’s MIMR system is used to demonstrate the principle.