FarView: An In-Situ Manufactured Lunar Far Side Radio Array Concept for 21-cm Dark Ages Cosmology

• DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2404.03840
• Publication Date: 2024-04-04
• Authors: R. S. Polidan; Jack O. Burns; A. Ignatiev; Alexander M. Hegedus; Jonathan C. Pober; Nivedita Mahesh; Tzu‐Ching Chang; Gregg Hallinan; Yuhong Ning; Judd D. Bowman
• Keywords: Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO); FOS: Physical sciences; Astrophysics - Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics; Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics (astro-ph.IM); Astrophysics - Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics

FarView is an early-stage concept for a large, low-frequency radio observatory, manufactured in-situ on the lunar far side using metals extracted from regolith. It consists of 100,000 dipole antennas in compact subarrays distributed over large area but with empty space between core-halo structure. covers total ~200 km2, has dense core within inner ~36 and ~power-law falloff antenna density out to ~14 km center. With this design, it relatively easy identify multiple viable build sites side. The science case emphasizes unique capabilities probe unexplored Cosmic Dark Ages - identified by 2020 Astrophysics Decadal Survey as discovery cosmology. will deliver power spectra tomographic maps tracing evolution Universe before birth first stars beginning Dawn, potentially provide insights into dark matter, early energy, neutrino masses, physics inflation. What makes feasible affordable timeframe 2030s that in-situ, utilizing industrial technologies. This manufacturing architecture utilizes Earth-built equipment transported surface extract regolith use those manufacture most array components: antennas, lines, silicon solar cell systems. approach also enables long functional lifetime, permitting servicing repair observatory. full observatory take 4 8 years build, depending realized performance elements delivery scenario.