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Nokia plans to make communication between earthlings and astronauts visiting the Moon easy. The Finnish telecommunications giant is preparing to launch a 4G network on Earth’s natural satellite later this year. This will not only boost humanity’s efforts to make lunar discoveries but also pave the way for human presence on the lunar surface.
According to a report from CNBC, Nokia announced its plans to deploy 4G networks on the Moon during this year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC), which was held in late February in Barcelona.
SpaceX rocket to ferry Nokia’s equipment to the Moon
If things go as planned, US-based private space company Intuitive Machines will launch its Nova-C lunar lander aboard a SpaceX rocket. The payload will also include Nokia’s antenna-equipped base station. Besides, a solar-powered rover will also accompany the equipment, CNBC cited Nokia principal engineer, Luis Maestro Ruiz De Temino.
Once the hardware reaches the Shackleton crater, an LTE connection will be established between the rover and the lander. While it sounds like the hardware will be used by astronauts for surfing online, in reality, Nokia is aiming to support the next crewed lunar mission, Artemis 1.
The 4G network will enable astronauts to communicate with each other and with mission control. Not just that! The network will also allow them to control the rover remotely and stream and transmit data back to Earth, all in real-time. Nokia believes its technology is capable of lasting through extreme conditions of space.
Nokia claims that the lunar network will “provide critical communication capabilities for many different data transmission applications, including vital command and control functions, remote control of lunar rovers, real-time navigation and streaming of high definition video.”
Finding ice on the Moon with the help of 4G
Using its network, Nokia hopes to help space agencies look for ice on the lunar surface. Much of the Moon’s surface is currently dry, but recent uncrewed missions have discovered ice remnants trapped in craters around the Moon’s poles.
If the mission discovers ice, it can be broken up into hydrogen and oxygen and used as rocket fuel. Moreover, the extracted water can be used for drinking and can also provide breathable oxygen to astronauts who stay on the lunar surface for extended periods. Internet may not be the only thing we’ll need to live on the Moon, it’ll still be a huge leap in humanity’s lunar ambitions.