As humanity prepares for an enduring presence beyond Earth, establishing a reliable communications and navigation network on the Moon is essential. Among the most ambitious initiatives in this area is LunaNet — a revolutionary project designed to create an interconnected, flexible, and resilient communications and navigation network for lunar missions. The Aerospace Corporation, drawing on its extensive expertise in space systems, is playing a critical role in shaping LunaNet’s development and implementation, helping to lay the foundation for sustainable exploration and future lunar commercialization.

Developed through a collaboration between NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), LunaNet aims to introduce Earth-like connectivity essential for future human and robotic missions. This initiative has led to the creation of the Augmented Forward Signal (AFS), a standardized communication and navigation signal that will enable seamless data transmission, precise navigation, and enhanced situational awareness for lunar operations. As space agencies and private companies alike are gearing up for more frequent and complex lunar missions, LunaNet is poised to serve as a foundational infrastructure for missions to the Moon and beyond. 

“By integrating cutting-edge networking principles with resilient navigation and science capabilities, we are paving the way for sustained lunar operations,” said Philip Dafesh, the distinguished engineer/scientist leading Aerospace’s efforts to define the AFS navigation capabilities. “Aerospace’s expertise is instrumental in shaping this future, ensuring that LunaNet is not only functional but also scalable and adaptable to the evolving needs of cislunar and lunar exploration.”

Aerospace’s Role in Advancing LunaNet

Aerospace has been pivotal in advancing LunaNet’s technical framework. One of its key innovations is the design of the AFS for cislunar navigation which demonstrates the first integration of commercial 5G standards into a satellite navigation signal. Aerospace conducted extensive design, analysis and simulation of five different AFS signal design alternatives that was crucial to arriving at consensus between ESA, NASA and JAXA stakeholders. These analyses demonstrated that recommended AFS signal design was superior in many ways to Earth-based Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) signals in terms of providing superior performance and flexibility to support a wide range of use cases critical for lunar environments.

Through rigorous analyses, and comparison of these alternatives with performance of GNSS systems such as the Global Positioning System (GPS), Aerospace provided NASA with technical justification to address the concerns of all stakeholders, ultimately leading to the official acceptance of Aerospace’s AFS design as the baseline for cislunar navigation by NASA and ESA.

Furthermore, Aerospace is developing a radio frequency test set to validate LunaNet’s compatibility with commercial providers. This test set, built around agile, cost-effective software-defined radios, ensures flexibility and longevity — essential qualities for supporting evolving mission needs. Delivery of this test set is slated for later this year, marking another significant milestone.

Core Services of LunaNet

LunaNet will establish an extensible framework, incorporating innovative networking techniques and standardized protocols to support rapid expansion on the Moon. This architecture allows participation from industry, academia, and international partners, enabling them to develop and operate LunaNet nodes alongside NASA. These nodes will provide networking, navigation, detection and information, and radio and optical science services.  

Traditionally, space missions rely on pre-scheduled links with relay satellites or ground-based antennas for communication. LunaNet revolutionizes this approach by adopting a network structure akin to the internet on Earth. This system allows users to maintain continuous connections with the larger network, eliminating the need for pre-scheduled data transmission.

The backbone of LunaNet’s networking capabilities is Delay/Disruption Tolerant Networking (DTN), which ensures reliable data delivery despite potential signal disruptions. If a connection between two LunaNet nodes is interrupted, DTN enables data storage until a viable communication path is reestablished, ensuring uninterrupted information flow.

LunaNet’s navigation capabilities provide operational independence from Earth-based data processing while maintaining high precision. The network will offer key measurements essential for onboard orbit determination, guidance system operations, and surface positioning.

By leveraging LunaNet’s navigation services, missions will have all the necessary tools for autonomous navigation — whether on the lunar surface or in orbit — without relying on continuous Earth-based oversight. This independence is crucial for future long-duration missions, where immediate Earth communication may not always be feasible.

LunaNet will greatly enhance situational awareness for astronauts, rovers, and other lunar assets. Its detection and information services will provide real-time alerts and mission-critical data. For example, space weather instruments integrated into LunaNet will detect hazardous solar activity and directly notify users, eliminating the need to wait for Earth-based commands. This capability mirrors terrestrial weather alerts received on smartphones.

Additionally, LunaNet will feature a lunar search and rescue system known as LunaSAR. Developed with expertise from NASA’s Search and Rescue Office, LunaSAR will offer rapid response capabilities, ensuring astronaut safety in emergency situations.

LunaNet will also serve as a valuable platform for scientific research. Its nodes will facilitate measurements that benefit Earth-based researchers by utilizing radio and infrared optical communication links. The network’s widespread placement will allow for consistent, long-term lunar environmental observations across various spatial scales.

Moreover, LunaNet antennas can be employed in radio astronomy, enabling deep-space observations by detecting radio emissions from distant celestial objects. These capabilities provide scientists with unprecedented opportunities to test new theories and advance knowledge in space science.

Interoperability for a Shared Future

Designed to integrate seamlessly with various agencies, organizations, commercial partners, and academic institutions, LunaNet will foster a collaborative ecosystem for lunar exploration. Its flexible and extensible nature ensures that the system can evolve alongside the growing demands of lunar and deep-space missions.

LunaNet will also be instrumental in supporting NASA’s Artemis program, which aims to establish a sustainable presence on the Moon and pave the way for human missions to Mars and beyond. By providing reliable communications, autonomous navigation, and vital situational data, LunaNet will help bridge the technological gap needed for the next generation of space exploration.

“LunaNet is more than just a communication network — it’s foundational to the emerging lunar economy and a new era of deep-space exploration,” said Dafesh. “Aerospace is committed to ensuring its success by applying our expertise in space systems, navigation, and advanced technologies. This is a defining moment in space history, and Aerospace will be at the heart of it.”