On the Use of Lunar Occultations for Investigating the Angular Structure of Radio Sources

Abstract

It is shown that it is possible, in principle, to recover the strip distribution of brightness aeross a radio source from the Fresnel diffraction pattern which is observed. as a. source is occulted. Practically useful methods of approximating to this ideal 8.1'&. indicated. Rather surprisingly, the resolution attainable in the presence of a given noise level is not related to the angular width of the first Fresnel zone, but is just the same, as it would be if geometrical optics were valid.