AST SpaceMobile exceeds 10 Mbps in sat-to-phone downlink

AST SpaceMobile, the company building a space-based cellular broadband network accessible directly by standard mobile phones, has announced it has achieved repeated successful download speeds above 10 Mbps during testing of its BlueWalker 3 satellite.

The milestone of space-based cellular communications at 4G speeds comes less than two months after the company stated it had completed the first-ever space-based voice calls using everyday unmodified smartphones, and only nine months after the launch of BlueWalker 3. Designed to communicate directly with cellular devices via 3GPP standard frequencies at 5G speeds, the satellite spans 64.38 m² in size — a design feature that is critical to supporting a space-based cellular broadband network — which is understood to make it the largest ever commercial communications array deployed in low Earth orbit.

Engineers conducted download speed tests in Hawaii in June 2023 using multiple off-the-shelf smartphones. The 4G LTE download speed testing, which used AT&T spectrum and Nokia RAN technology, reached initial speeds up to 10.3 Mbps, with further testing of voice calls to AT&T employees. Evaluation of BlueWalker 3’s capabilities continues, with enablement of 5G cellular broadband as the next major test activity.

“AST SpaceMobile’s space-based cellular capabilities are designed to be a critical extension for cellular communications,” said Abel Avellan, Chairman and CEO of AST SpaceMobile. “In addition to supporting basic voice and text that we expect from phones, it would also enable users to browse the internet, download files, use messaging apps or stream video.

“Achieving this milestone from an unmodified, standard cell phone on the ground connecting through our low Earth orbit satellite is another groundbreaking moment in telecommunications history and an important step toward AST SpaceMobile’s goal of bringing broadband services to parts of the world where cellular coverage is either unreliable or simply does not exist today.”

Chris Sambar, Head of AT&T Network, added, “Successfully reaching double-digit download speeds during satellite-to-smartphone testing takes us one step closer to ensuring people across the United States will be able to stay connected no matter their location. This milestone wouldn’t be possible without the overall focus and determination of the teams working daily to achieve our shared space-based vision of connectivity.”

Image caption: 3D-rendered illustration of AST SpaceMobile’s BlueWalker 3 test satellite, currently in low Earth orbit.