The race to build a functional base on the moon is heating up as NASA recently announced $370 million in new contracts, given out to many private companies. Among them is a $14.1 million contract that was awarded to Nokia Bell Labs to build the first LTE/4G cellular communication network on the moon.
It is no surprise that the contract to build a communications network on the moon was given to Nokia, considering their industry-leading expertise in the field. Nokia has been responsible for the deployment of 4G technologies in many markets and now is also responsible for the deployment of 5G networks.
A well established 4G network on the moon will help improve communication between lunar landers, rovers, habitats and also astronauts. “The system would also extend to spacecraft,” Reuter said. “With NASA funding, Nokia will look at how terrestrial technology could be modified for the lunar environment to support reliable, high-rate communications.”
This project will one of the many that NASA is announcing for their goal of being able to establish a lunar base where astronauts can live and work in by 2028. Some of the other contracts that NASA has announced include space companies such as SpaceX and United Launch Alliance.