Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen will have a unique mission during the upcoming Artemis 2 journey as he ventures beyond the moon to observe its far side, invisible from Earth. Simultaneously, scientists plan to deploy telescopes and robots to explore deep space from this vantage point.
The moon presents two distinct faces due to gravitational locking with Earth, ensuring one side always faces Earth while the other gazes into space. Despite being dubbed the “dark side,” the far side receives as much sunlight as the Earth-facing side.
Unlike the near side’s smooth plains known as “Maria,” the far side boasts a rugged, crater-laden terrain. It serves as a peaceful haven shielded from Earth’s artificial radio interference, making it an ideal spot for radio telescopes.
During his journey, Hansen will witness rare sights unseen by most, surpassing the Apollo astronauts who orbited near the equator. He will travel 7,500 kilometers past the moon, offering a panoramic view of the entire globe and a simultaneous glimpse of Earth and the moon, a novel perspective for human eyes.
The Artemis crew will conduct detailed lunar surface observations during the flyby, leveraging the human eye’s ability to discern subtle details crucial for potential spacecraft landings. Cameras may overlook nuances like color variations or surface roughness affecting landing conditions.
Proposed missions to the moon’s far side include Japan’s TSUKUYOMI, aiming to install a radio telescope array to investigate the universe’s early stages during the dark ages. Detecting faint radio signals from neutral hydrogen gas post-big bang could shed light on dark matter’s role in shaping cosmic evolution.
Future plans involve deploying more radio observatories on the moon, including LuSEE Night and NASA’s Farside Seismic Suite, to further explore the far side’s mysteries. NASA and ESA are also in the nascent stages of developing lunar observatories.
While human missions to the moon focus on colonization and resource exploration, the far side remains an enigmatic realm for robotic explorers delving into the universe’s origins. It is a domain where robots silently probe the universe’s edge and beginnings while Earth remains unseen on the horizon.