This amazing image of the moon’s surface was taken from Earth

Astronomers have performed an incredible observational test for a radio telescope on Earth. They used a new radar system to capture stunning, high-resolution images of near-Earth space. The target: the Apollo 15 moon landing site.

The Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia has been fitted with a new bespoke radio wave transmitter. In November, researchers sent signals to the Moon as part of a proof of concept test. What they got is an amazing picture. The Hadley region on the near side of the Moon is visible with a resolution of 5 meters (16.4 feet).

In particular, the image shows Hadley C Crater, which measures 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) in diameter, and the winding Hadley Rille, a narrow depression that stretches 130 kilometers (80 miles) with an average width of 1.2 kilometers (0.75 miles). and a few hundred meters deep. It is believed to have been an ancient lava tube, which collapsed for billions of years.

The observations provided some of the best views of the region ever taken from Earth, a phenomenal achievement for the Green Bank Observatory (GBO), the National Radio Astronomical Observatory (NRAO) and Raytheon Intelligence & Space which led the ‘experience.

“This project opens up a whole new range of capabilities for NRAO and GBO,” said Tony Beasley, director of NRAO and vice president for radio astronomy at Associated Universities, Inc. in a statement. “We have already participated in important radar studies of the solar system, but transforming the GBT into a steerable planetary radar transmitter will greatly expand our ability to pursue intriguing new lines of research.

It works by radar signals emitted by the Green Bank Telescope hitting the surface of any object under study, in this case, the Apollo 15 landing site on the Moon. They then reflect and are observed by telescopes that are part of the Very Long Baseline Array, an extensive array from the US Virgin Islands to the mainland United States, and all the way to Hawaii.

The incredible test is the completion of a two-year effort to create such a radar, but it is also currently only a proof of concept. Researchers see the current transmitter as a springboard to design something more powerful. Something that can be used to study far beyond the Moon.

“The planned system will be a leap forward in radar science, allowing access to unheard of features of the solar system from here on Earth,” said Karen O’Neil, director of the GBO site.

The new transmitter is expected to be able to capture and provide detailed observations of small objects passing close to Earth as well as moons or other planets in the solar system. If the finalized plan comes to fruition, radar signals could allow us to study objects as far as Neptune’s orbit from Earth.