Huawei, Ericsson and Nokia may be fighting for network dominance on Earth, but in outer space Nokia is the clear winner.
The Finnish company has announced a deal with NASA to provide the first 4G network on the moon. Communication on the moon is becoming an important issue as interest in lunar colonization grows. Many see colonizing the Moon as the first step toward colonizing Mars and other planets.
“Leveraging our rich and successful history in space technologies, from pioneering satellite communication to discovering the cosmic microwave background radiation produced by the Big Bang, we are now building the first ever cellular communications network on the Moon,” said Marcus Weldon, Chief Technology Officer at Nokia and Nokia Bell Labs President. “Reliable, resilient and high-capacity communications networks will be key to supporting sustainable human presence on the lunar surface. By building the first high performance wireless network solution on the Moon, Nokia Bell Labs is once again planting the flag for pioneering innovation beyond the conventional limits.”
Space exploration is increasingly big business, with transportation companies, cloud providers and now telecommunication companies all getting onboard. Providing the first lunar cellphone network is a big win for Nokia.