That much-awaited wireless call from the Moon to the Earth will just have to be put on hold - for now. Nokia's 4G LTE network was expected to be put through its paces from the south pole of the lunar surface following the March 6th landing of the Athena Lander, built by the private Houston, Texas-based company, Intuitive Machines.
Athena arrived with Nokia's Network in a Box, or NIB, on board. Like its predecessor lander - also built by Intuitive Machines - the lander tipped over upon arrival and, with its solar panels blocked from receiving the necessary recharge from the sun, the mission was quickly declared over.
Undaunted, Nokia pointed out that the company did successfully deliver the moon's first cellular network and powered it up for 25 minutes to transmit data and receive commands from the Earth. Hopes were high, though, that there would be more to report. After all, this mission was supposed to help facilitate communications in 2027 aboard Artemis III. That mission is to be NASA's first human spaceflight to the moon since 1972 and astronauts are expected to be wearing spacesuits that have integrated 4G LTE capabilities courtesy of Nokia and Axiom Space.
Of course that's still two years away so....until then, hold all calls, please.