By Yashita Soti   
April 21, 2025

Introduction

We often take communication for granted here on Earth. Whether it’s a phone call, a tweet or a Zoom meeting. The infrastructure is invisible but ever present on the moon, not so much in the second installment of a block series on lunar communication, we are diving into fascinating lessons. We are learning from real world studies and research uncovering, house space forces us to rethink everything we thought we knew about signal latency and interplanetary connection.

Lesson 1: The Far Side of the Moon is a Communication Dead Zone

Ever since the Apollo missions, we have known that the Moon’s far side is the hemisphere that always faces away from Earth. It is a notorious blind spot for direct radio communication. This is due to tidal locking which ensures only one phase of the Moon is visible from the Earth.

China’s Chang’e-4 mission in 2019 made headlines as the force of landing on the far side made possible by satellite, Queqiao, station at Earth-Moon L2, a gravitationally stable point on the moon. This milestone proved that placing satellites in halo orbits around large range points can extend communication coverage to even the Moon's most elusive corners.

Lesson 2: The Moon’s Terrain is Like a Giant Signal Maze

Lunar topography is more than picturesque. It’s a serious communication hazard even at modest elevation, differences on the lunar surface can block line-of-site radio transmission. Lunar dust (regolith) can also schedule radio waves, adding further distortion.

Researchers are now experimenting with hybrid networks that blend terrestrial-inspired mesh networks with orbital relays, ensuring communication can “hop” over mountains or through valleys. This could be crucial for enabling rovers to transmit data in real time while exploring Shackleton Crater, a site of intense interest due to its potential ice deposits.

Lesson 3: The Moon is a Perfect Laboratory for Delay-Tolerant Networking

Delay-Tolerant Networking (DTN), originally designed for deep-space missions, is being reimaged for lunar use, NASA’s LunaNet concept bills on DTN principles, enabling asynchronous data transfer between nodes. Think of it as the interplanetary equivalent of a postal service with intermittent pickups.

This is especially important because the best case latency between the Moon and Earth is 1.28 seconds one way. That might not sound like much, but for autonomous navigation or remote operations, that delay is significant. DTNs allow systems to send data even when the connection is temporarily lost, storing until a relay becomes available. 

Lesson 4: Power is Communication’s Invisible Nemesis

Radio communication doesn’t just rely on good signals. It needs serious power and the Moon isn't exactly generous with sunlight. During the lunar night, which lasts about 14 Earth days, solar power is unavailable. That’s why communication systems have to be both energy efficient and radiation hardened.

One proposed solution from the European Space Agency (ESA) involves using small nuclear batteries or regolith-insulated energy storage units to keep systems operational during blackout periods. NASA, too, is researching “power beaming”, where energy is transmitted via microwaves from orbiting satellites to ground stations. Science fiction? Maybe not for too long.

Lesson 5: Moon Networks Will Set the Stage for Mars

Many of the lunar communication architectures being designed now are explicitly intended to scale up for Mars. The Moon is close enough for frequent testing, but harsh enough to stress-test systems.

Early lunar networks will form the basis of the Solar System Internet, connecting lunar bases, Martian outposts, and the deep-space probes. These systems will need to be autonomous, intelligent and capable of managing multiple signal types (radio, laser, optical) across long distances. The Moon, then, becomes a sandbox for solving tomorrow’s interplanetary networking challenges.

Closing Thoughts:

The moon is teaching us that communication is just about bandwidth or bars. It’s about resilience, autonomy and clever engineering. Each creator, shadow and second of delay is a lesson in how to build systems that can thrive in the most extreme conditions. At lunar MVI, we’re inspired by this knowledge and continuously looking at how to apply it to our research. As we imagine a connected lunar future, we are not just thinking about faster data. We are thinking about smarter, adaptive and Looney Tune networks. stay tuned for part three. Explore the ethics, governance and open questions about who owns and manages the moon’s communication infrastructure spoiler it’s complicated.