Engineers have connected Japan and Europe via space-enabled, next-generation 5G telecommunication links for the first time, the European Space Agency (ESA) said in a release.
The agency noted that the possibility of switching smoothly between terrestrial 5G connections and satellites is “essential” to ensure that everything and everyone stays connected wherever they go. Work on “non-terrestrial network” integration with 5G in 3GPP’s standardization process began in Release 15.
ESA noted that engineers in Japan collaborated with their counterparts in Europe to test several business scenarios that will demand such seamless transitions.
