HELSINKI (FINLAND) – Finland’s Nokia has been chosen by NASA to build the first cellular network on the moon, according to the company on Monday.
The lunar network will be made part of the space agency’s efforts to take back humans to the moon by 2024. They will also be aiming to build long-term settlements there through its Artemis programme.
Nokia said the lunar surface will have the first wireless broadband communications system built in late 2022, before humans make it back there.
The Finnish company will team up with Texas-based private space craft design firm Intuitive Machines so as to deliver the network equipment to the moon using their lunar lander.
Nokia said that after delivery, the network will do the configuration itself and establish the first LTE (Long-Term Evolution) communications system on the moon.
It said, “The 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.”