Chang'e-4 farside landing mission Options

[Hungry4info]

The Netherlands-China Low Frequency Explorer (NCLE) experiment has (partially) deployed its antennas. According to the commentary on this page, Queqiao will function as a radio astronomy observatory during the lunar farside night.

However, they have had some difficulty deploying the antennas to full length.

The longer stay behind the moon most probably did have an effect on the antennas. At first, the antennas unfolded smoothly, but as the process progressed, it became increasingly difficult. The team therefore decided to collect data first and perhaps unfold the antennas further at a later point in time. With these shorter antennas, the instrument is sensitive to signals from around 800 million years after the Big Bang. Once unfolded to their full length, they will be able to capture signals from just after the Big Bang.

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