This antenna combines a rigid fixed aperture antenna with an auxiliary deployable foam aperture to greatly increase the size of the antenna. The primary improvement over prior art is the use of a polymeric foam as both the structure and the deployment mechanisms used to deploy a large reflective antenna surface.

This is an improvement over an inflatable hybrid antenna due for the following reasons:

1. The elimination of an inflation system reduces complexity, risk and mass

• No pressurant tank or gas generator is required.
  
• No plumbing is required
  
• No pressure regulation system is required storage system, .
  
• No risk of leakage caused by manufacturing defects, stowage and deployment failures, micro-meteoroid or particle impact damage.
  
• No need to control the inflation pressure over potentially large temperature variations.
  
• No need to rely on a rigidization system which typically involves distributed heaters blanketing and additional power requirements on the vehicle.

2. The use of foam enables the antenna designer to design shapes and configurations not achievable from a stressed skin inflatable system.

3. No power is consumed and no exposure to sunlight is required to stabilize or rigidize the structure once it is deployed.

4. A foam system has higher mechanical damping than an inflated system and this can be a great benefit to large structures especially when used in space.