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There are few things more aggravating than trying to stay connected on your smartphone when you can’t even get a bar. You may have better luck on the moon.
Not really. We now experience what could have been a science fiction novel a few decades ago. NASA recently announced that it will partner with Bell Labs, owner of Nokia, and Intuitive Machines to build the first 4G LTE network on the Moon. The $ 370 million project will create a network designed to withstand harsh lunar conditions, as well as rocket launches and landings. It will enable communication for many different data transmission applications, critical for rovers and other equipment crawling through uncharted territory.
Astronauts probably won’t have to deal with hearing “Can you hear me now?” every five seconds, either.
“Reliable, resilient and high-capacity communications networks will be key to supporting sustainable human presence on the lunar surface,” said Nokia CTO and Nokia Bell Labs president Marcus Weldon in a press release. “By building the first high-performance wireless network solution on the Moon, Nokia Bell Labs is once again planting the flag of pioneering innovation beyond conventional boundaries.”
Building a cell network on the Moon will look nothing like cell towers on Earth. Those aren’t exactly the easiest things to load onto a rocket, and you want to take off with as little extra weight as possible. The absence of a protective atmosphere means that the equipment will be exposed to brutal space radiation that can ruin electronic components that are not prepared. Because there is 200 times more radiation on the lunar surface than on the Earth’s surface, this system will fortify itself against cosmic rays and other threats against which it does not have a built-in defense. Never mind that temperatures can drop from a frigid 250 to -208 degrees Fahrenheit during a lunar day.
The Artemis astronauts won’t be far from technological advancements on Earth either, because Bell Labs will make the network upgradeable to 5G in the future. 4G LTE can download at a minimum of 100 megabits per second. 5G is emerging, but we haven’t exactly succeeded yet (although some networks are trying to increase sales). The company has not been able to say anything about the frequencies because the technology is not yet clear. When that’s the case, 5G should allow your phone to download a full movie (in HD!) In seconds, that is, at a speed of around a gigabit or a million bits per second.
“Nokia’s lunar network consists of an LTE base station with integrated Evolved Packet Core (EPC) capabilities, LTE user equipment, RF antennas, and highly reliable operations and maintenance (O&M) control software,” Nokia said in your press release. “The solution has been specially designed to withstand the harsh conditions of lunar launch and landing, and to operate in the extreme conditions of space.”
So why is the Moon less likely to have dead zones? Zero atmosphere means there are practically no obstacles. Signals degrade when they hit things like walls, trees, or buildings, to inhibit communication over an LTE network. NASA will be able to choose any cellular frequency band it wishes. You also won’t have the problem Earth has with constantly overloaded wireless spectrum. When everyone is on their phones, you will likely be disconnected from the network. That is instantly resolved on the Moon because there won’t be nearly 7.8 billion people trying to pick up a signal.
You just have to wonder what name they are going to give to that network. It would be the coolest thing if your phone connects to “Moonwalk”.
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