$14.1 million for LTE?

[George K]

On the moon?

If NASA’s Artemis program succeeds in returning humans to the moon in 2024, the astronauts may have the option of tweeting their first words before leaving their first footprints.

Last week, the US space agency announced a $14.1 million contract with the telecommunications company Nokia to build an LTE cellular network on the moon, one of 15 NASA grants awarded this year to private companies to boost the development of new space technologies. The hardware could touch down in late 2022 and would not need human hands for deployment or configuration, according to Nokia. The network would provide a speedy connection to any devices within range of a base station.

“Nokia’s proposal to adapt existing 4G/LTE technology for use on the Moon could support communications between lunar landers, rovers, habitats, astronauts, and more on the surface,” said Jim Reuter, the associate administrator for NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, in an email. “This future capability could be key to a robust, sustainable presence on and around the Moon.”