Technology
Nokia and AST SpaceMobile will build world’s first space standard 4G / 5G mobile terminal equipment
According to the latest report, Nokia announced that for areas on earth without mobile network coverage, Nokia and AST SpaceMobile recently signed a five-year 5G contract to build the world’s first standard 4G / 5G mobile terminal equipment space-based mobile network to expand communication coverage and eliminate connection barriers.
Recently, Nokia announced the signing of a five-year 5G contract with AST SpaceMobile. The company is building the world’s first and only space-based mobile network that can access standard 4G or 5G mobile terminals. Under this contract, Nokia and AST SpaceMobile will work towards the common goal of expanding global coverage and connecting underserved regions around the world. AST SpaceMobile’s BlueWalker 3 test satellite will be launched by the end of this year and will begin global testing with mobile network operators on six continents.
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AST SpaceMobile aims to remove the connectivity barriers for more than 5 billion mobile users worldwide and to extend cellular coverage to approximately half of the world’s unconnected users. This means that users outside of cellular coverage can roam from a terrestrial network to a space network for the first time without the need for specialized hardware. AST SpaceMobile has partnered with mobile network operators serving more than 1.8 billion mobile phone users.
The Nokia AirScale Single RAN equipment will help AST SpaceMobile to provide mobile services to existing and potential users in areas where terrestrial communications are underserved, including connecting equipment on the land, sea, or in flight around the world.
Moreover, Nokia will provide a comprehensive and energy-efficient AirScale product portfolio, including AirScale base stations equipped with the latest generation of ReefShark chipsets. Based on Nokia’s modular baseband boards, AST SpaceMobile can expand capacity where necessary, increasing flexibility and efficiency. Nokia will also provide NetAct solutions for network management and seamless operation, as well as technology optimization and support services.
AST SpaceMobile plans to test the BlueWalker 3 satellite in Cape Canaveral, Florida, in mid-to-early September. BlueWalker 3 is a low-Earth orbit satellite with an aperture of approximately 64 square meters and is designed to connect directly to cellular devices via the 3GPP standard. AST SpaceMobile’s ultimate goal is to deploy around 100 satellites for massive global mobile coverage.