Lunar far-side radio arrays: a preliminary site survey

Le Conte, Zoe A; Elvis, Martin; Gläser, Philipp A

Abstract

The origin and evolution of structure in the Universe could be studied in the Dark Ages. The highly redshifted H I signal between 30 < z < 80 is the only observable signal from this era. Human radio interference and ionospheric effects limit Earth-based radio astronomy to frequencies >30 MHz. To observe the low-frequency window with research from compact steep spectrum sources, pulsars, and solar activity, a 200 km baseline lunar far-side radio interferometer has been much discussed. This paper conducts a preliminary site survey of potential far-side craters, which are few in number on the mountainous lunar far-side. Based on LRO LOLA data, 200 m resolution topographic maps of eight far-side sites were produced, and slope and roughness maps were derived from them. A figure of merit was created to determine the optimum site. Three sites are identified as promising. There is a need to protect these sites for astronomy.

Citation

Le Conte, Z. A., Elvis, M., & Gläser, P. A. (2023). Lunar far-side radio arrays: a preliminary site survey. RAS Techniques and Instruments, 2(1), 360-377. https://doi.org/10.1093/rasti/rzad022

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 16, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Jul 12, 2023
• Publication Date: 2023-01
• Deposit Date: Aug 17, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 17, 2023
• Journal: RAS Techniques and Instruments
• Print ISSN: 2752-8200
• Electronic ISSN: 2752-8200
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 2
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 360-377
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/rasti/rzad022
• Keywords: Moon, Surfaces, Instrumentation, Site testing
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1720436