Advancing Lunar Communication Infrastructure Using Flexible Software Defined Radio

To contribute to the development of lunar applications of 3GPP networks, Astranis will integrate commercial 3GPP 5G microcell firmware/software in small satellites (smallsats) equipped with software defined radios (SDRs) to create 5G networks for lunar communications. The networks can also be used to collect RF channel data to improve lunar radio frequency (RF) channel modeling. The combination provides a low-cost approach to create a communications network with full lunar coverage which can evolve the latest in 3GPP standards. The study will analyze the feasibility of implementing 5G-gNB microcell technologies within the Astranis SDR hardware and evaluate the potential performance and risks of using microcells as part of a broader adaptive lunar communications architecture. The study will evaluate a range of architectures and orbits to provide guidance on how to implement 5G protocols in a lunar orbital environment with differing ranges and channel effects than terrestrial networks such as doppler or scintillation. The funding for the SBIR will cover labor costs to conduct the feasibility study and operation of the tools to run the analysis.