Spirent Communications has announced that the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has selected Spirent to provide a pioneering lunar positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) simulation solution. This industry-first technology will support JAXA’s lunar exploration initiatives and contribute to the development of critical navigation infrastructure for future missions on the moon.
Spirent’s PNT X solution enables JAXA to simulate lunar PNT services in a controlled lab environment before they become operational on the moon. This capability is crucial for testing and validating mission-critical navigation equipment for lunar missions in compliance with the emergent LunaNet specification including adaptable S-band frequency solutions while ensuring scalability for the future of space exploration.
Leveraging PNT X and its custom signal definition capabilities, JAXA will now be able to experiment with novel S-band signals. Importantly, this will enable technicians to assess the potential performance of receivers that utilise standalone S-band Lunar PNT signals, or a combination of Lunar PNT and existing Earth-based L-band GNSS infrastructure. Simulating this combination of signals to the level of precision and realism required for such a critical application places significant performance demands on the simulation, which is met by Spirent’s robust, dedicated architecture.
Commenting on the announcement, Dr Masaya Murata, lunar PNT lead, JAXA, said, “JAXA’s lunar exploration initiatives require advanced simulation capabilities to ensure our navigation systems perform reliably in the challenging lunar environment. Spirent’s lunar PNT simulation solution provides us with the flexible and high-performance testing platform we need to develop next-generation navigation technologies before deployment on the moon. This collaboration represents an important step forward in establishing the infrastructure necessary for sustainable lunar exploration and future human presence on the lunar surface.”
Meanwhile, Ricardo Verdeguer Moreno, lead product manager, Spirent, said, “Supporting agencies such as JAXA in their innovative work to advance space exploration has been at the core of what Spirent has been doing for nearly 40 years. By delivering the flexibility needed for next-generation applications like lunar navigation without compromising the precision and reliability associated with Spirent’s PNT solutions, we continue to be the partner of choice for technological leaders.”
