In this July 26, 2018 file photo, a woman walks at the headquarters of Finnish telecommunication network company Nokia in Espoo, Finland.
In this July 26, 2018, file photo, a woman walks at the headquarters of Finnish telecommunication network company Nokia in Espoo, Finland. Associated Press
Herb Scribner
By Herb Scribner

NASA and Nokia are teaming up to put cellphone service on the moon.

  • Specifically, NASA will install a 4G network.
  • “The system could support lunar surface communications at greater distances, increased speeds, and provide more reliability than current standards,” NASA said.

Why now:

The decision to add 4G to the moon comes after NASA awarded $370 million to more than a dozen companies to add technology on the moon’s surface, CNN reports.

  • The added features include robotics, safer landing platforms, ways to ignite power and, yes, cellphone service.
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Why it matters:

Nokia’s Bell Labs will work on the project (the company received $14.1 million to do so).

  • Bell Labs said astronauts can use the 4G network to send data back to Earth, control land rovers and stream high-definition video, so there is a purpose to all of this, according to CNN.
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Extra details:

The 4G network will reportedly be upgraded to 5G in the near future, CNN reports.

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Engineers on the original Apollo missions from 1969 to 1972 used “radio communication through a network of transmitters, base stations, and relays,” according to reports.

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