Interplanetary Internet
Interplanetary Internet or Interplanetary Networking is spaced-based network first in relatively early stages of development.[1] One of its goals, amongst others, is to connect spacecrafts, satellites, rovers, and orbiters of different planets and comets for the exchange of scientific data.[2] Similar to internet on Earth, it is comprised of a network of nodes which communicate to one another.
Early Stages[edit | edit source]
The project first began in 1997, after Google's Vinton Cerf and Bob Kahn had consultations with individuals at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The two initially considered TCP/IP protocols, and soon realized that while those were sufficient for communications on Earth, they were insufficient for communications between Earth and Mars.[1]
Cerf has called the existing system "the front end of what could be an evolving and expanding interplanetary backbone."[1]
Challenges[edit | edit source]
Interplanetary Internet faces a number of challenges, including, but not limited to:[1]
- Slow speeds, due to interplanetary distances
- Planetary rotations, which change links to communication nodes on the surface of planets
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Google's Chief Internet Evangelist on Creating the Interplanetary Internet, Wired.com. Published 2013 May 6. Retrieved 2016 April 17.
- ↑ The Interplanetary Internet Implemented on the GENI Testbed, IEEE.org. Published 2015 December 6. Retrieved 2016 April 17.