The Far-side Array for Radio Science Investigations of the Dark ages and Exoplanets (FARSIDE) is a proposed mission concept to the lunar far side that seeks to deploy and operate an array of 128 dual-polarization, dipole antennas over a region of 100 square kilometers. The resulting interferometric radio telescope would provide unprecedented radio images of distant star systems, allowing for the investigation of faint radio signatures of coronal mass ejections and energetic particle events and could also lead to the detection of magnetospheres around exoplanets within their parent star's habitable zone. Simultaneously, FARSIDE would also measure the "Dark Ages" of the early Universe at a global 21-cm signal across a range of red shifts (z approximately 50-100). Each discrete antenna node in the array is connected to a central hub (located at the lander) via a communication and power tether. Nodes are driven by cold=operable electronics that continuously monitor an extremely wide-band of frequencies (200 kHz to 40 MHz), which surpass the capabilities of Earth-based telescopes by two orders of magnitude. Achieving this ground-breaking capability requires a robust deployment strategy on the lunar surface, which is feasible with existing, high TRL technologies (demonstrated or under active development) and is capable of delivery to the surface on next-generation commercial landers, such as Blue Origin's Blue Moon Lander. This paper presents an antenna packaging, placement, and surface deployment trade study that leverages recent advances in tethered mobile robots under development at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which are used to deploy a flat, antenna-embedded, tape tether with optical communication and power transmission capabilities.
翻译:用于对黑暗年代和Exotoplanets进行无线电科学调查的远端射电阵阵列(FARSIDE)是对月球远方的拟议任务概念,目的是在100平方公里的区域部署和运行128个双极、底球天线,由此产生的干涉测量射电望远镜将提供远星系统的前所未有的无线电图像,从而可以对日冕物质喷射和高能粒子事件的微弱无线电信号进行调查,也可以导致探测在其母星可居住区内的外板周围的磁层。同时,FARSIDE还将在全球21厘米的红变区域(约50-100平方公里)部署并运行128个双极、双极天天线天线天线阵列,通过通信和电电电梯将每个离子天线网连接到一个中央枢纽(位于陆架),由冷可操作电子系统驱动,持续监测极宽频带(200 kHz至40MMHD)的频率(200 kHz至40MDMD),这比基于地基的地球观测望远镜的电路路运速度能力要高出两个级,在地面部署的地面部署战略下,在目前的地面部署中,这种地面技术需要一种稳定的地面发展,在地面技术下,在地面上进行这种地面上进行一个稳定的部署,在地面发展,在地面技术下,在地面技术下需要一种稳定的地面技术下,在地面上进行一种稳定的地面发展,这是一种稳定的地面技术。