Is the Moon included in Vodafone Passport?

A while ago I thought, ‘Screw it, let’s put a Data Centre on the Moon.’

I did some calculations, phoned a few folk and reckoned it wouldn’t be that difficult.

I like the idea of having ewan@ewan.moon as an email address.

I did the typical entrepreneurial fag-packet solution viewpoint.

1. Get a decent server, set it up, configure it.
2. Plug that into some sort of solar energy thing. So it works.
3. Attach a decent 10k/sec transmitter so it can at least talk to us when it’s on the moon.
4. Make it all fit into a package small enough to be shot into space etc.
5. Find someone to fly it there and drop it off.

A good few million quid.

But you’d have a moon email address. And the controversial ability to host applications — albeit at very SLOW data rates — that are outside standard Governmental geographic controls.

So I shelved this when I recognised that I’d be better investing cash elsewhere.

Which brings me to mobile phones and phoning the moon. Natasha Lomas (via silicon, it seems) has posted a story on ZDnet about kitting out the moon with mobile service.

A UK-led mission to put a satellite in orbit around the Moon which could one day enable lunar colonists to use mobile phones to communicate with each other has inched a step closer to blast off.

You can read more about this here. I wonder. Fast forward 20 years and maybe I might not be paying Vodafone 35p a minute to call someone on another UK network anymore.