Europe has opened a new chapter in space-based 6G testing via Britain’s Open Cosmos.

The Didcot-headquartered satellite maker confirmed its in-orbit telecom laboratory was aboard SpaceX's recent Transporter-15 mission, which launched at the end of November.

Named 6GStarLab, the lab was created with Spain-based research and design firm I2Cat, and is described as Europe’s first open 6G research laboratory in low-Earth orbit (LEO) for 6G experimentation in non-terrestrial networks (NTN). As reported by Electronics Weekly, it will support testing of 6G frequencies with multiband devices and feature an optical terminal for improved satellite-to-ground links.

The launch forms part of Open Cosmos’ Open Constellation infrastructure, and included the deployment of another satellite separate from the 6G function.

The project is part of the Universalisation of Digital Infrastructures for Cohesion UNICO I+D 6G program, which is promoted by the Spanish government and financed with NextGenerationEU funds.

I2CAT has benefited from approximately $11.6 million of these public funds from which it awarded a $1.9 million public contract to Open Cosmos. The mission includes payloads it designed by Microwave Sensors and Electronics as developed through the 6GSatNet project, and a ground station by Singapore’s Transcelestial.

A ground segment located in Móra la Nova will serve as the control center for the 6GStarLab experiments.

While China currently leads the way on 6G testing in NTN environments, Europe has made some effort with the European Space Agency (ESA) tapping Tesat for a 6G satellite precursor project last year.

Perhaps surprisingly, U.S. research in the area has been more ground based, with the exception of Elon Musk’s Starlink service, which reportedly commissioned Samsung to design an AI-driven modem chip for the company’s 6G NTN venture.