Editing MESSENGER (section)

===Communications===

The probe included two [[small deep space transponder]]s for communications with the [[Deep Space Network]] and three kinds of antennas: a high gain phased array whose main beam could be electronically steered in one plane, a medium-gain "fan-beam" antenna and a low gain horn with a broad pattern. The high gain antenna was used as transmit-only at 8.4&nbsp;GHz, the medium-gain and low gain antennas transmit at 8.4&nbsp;GHz and receive at 7.2&nbsp;GHz, and all three antennas operate with right-hand circularly polarized (RHCP) radiation. One of each of these antennas was mounted on the front of the probe facing the Sun, and one of each was mounted to the back of the probe facing away from the Sun.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mwjournal.com/Journal/article.asp?HH_ID=AR_110 |title=The Medium-gain Antenna of the MESSENGER Spacecraft |publisher=Microwave Journal |date=October 1, 2005 |access-date=March 19, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101101111825/http://www.mwjournal.com/Journal/article.asp?HH_ID=AR_110 |archive-date=November 1, 2010 }}</ref>