Lasers on the Moon: Recommendations for Pioneering Lunar Communication Infrastructure

Future missions carrying humans to the moon will require fast and resilient communication infrastructure to allow occupants to communicate between various orbiters, rovers, and stations—and to relay valuable data back to Earth. This work begins by examining the two core enabling technologies for space communications: radiofrequency and optical links. These approaches are compared in the context of recent and ongoing missions by NASA and private entities. We then propose a set of recommendations for lunar communications infrastructure to enable habitation. Three pillars unify the approach: scalable design and capabilities, resilience to environmental and cyber threats, and universal applicability to a wide range of mission profiles. The engineering efforts and areas of focus necessary to mitigate identified weaknesses and achieve the described capabilities are discussed. We conclude by highlighting the significance of several upcoming missions that will serve as milestones in proving the viability of optical links as dependable communications infrastructure.