  Satellite communication is experiencing a new dawn thanks to low earth orbit
mega constellations being deployed at an unprecedented speed. Fueled by the
renewed interest in non-terrestrial networks (NTN), the Third Generation
Partnership Project (3GPP) is preparing 5G NR, NB-IoT and LTE-M for NTN
operation. This article is focused on LTE-M and the essential adaptations
needed for supporting satellite communication. Specifically, the major
challenges facing LTE-M NTN at the physical and higher layers are discussed and
potential solutions are outlined.
