Abstract

The methods presently used to image sources with a radio telescope or similar optical interferometer all require that the sources are far enough away to be in the far field of the antenna array. However, new radio telescopes are being considered with spaceborne antenna arrays that are so large that some radio sources of interest are within their near field. A theoretical model is developed which appears to be useful for refocusing a radio telescope to image sources which are within the near field of the antenna array.

© 1987 Optical Society of America