KarmaWSYD t1_jeejsg0 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 1:17 PM

Reply to comment by tachophile in Nokia to set up first 4G network on moon with NASA by Free_Swimming

Why would using whole satellite constellation be more practical for providing network access on the moon over some LTE stations?

tachophile t1_jefviph wrote on March 31, 2023 at 6:36 PM

Because nothing needs to land, less delta V/fuel, and you'd need a lot fewer satellites than stations. Also, there should be little if any new h/w engineering necessary adapting Starlink for lunar operations.

KarmaWSYD t1_jefzn5j wrote on March 31, 2023 at 7:03 PM

Starlink still needs ground stations for each connection, no? Besides, are we realistically even looking at that many stations?

tachophile t1_jeg7ic0 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 7:55 PM

AFAIK not with the laser interconnect.

KarmaWSYD t1_jegmad3 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 9:35 PM

That's at leastsomething. Still, you'd need user terminals which, to my knowledge, haven't gotten particularly small or light, at least compared to a 4G chip. Probably using quite a bit more energy, too.

tachophile t1_jegou4a wrote on March 31, 2023 at 9:53 PM

Starlink v2 can and have started launching. They're planning to test it later this year with T-Mobile to create global data access via their existing phones.