Twenty space agencies, including ESA and NASA, discuss this week about interplanetary internet connections. Such connections would be needed, for example, in unmanned spacecraft to be able to control.
The European space agency ESA is expected that the sending of data by the space complex is going to be, for example, because Marsrovers and manned maanbases must be able to communicate with satellites. That networks to each other can be knotted. From 16 to 19 april consult in Germany twenty space agencies, including in addition to the ESA, among others, the American NASA, in a special committee on the issue.
According to the ESA, it is examined how current standards that are used, for example, mobile phones and laptops can be used for interplanetary communication. Standards are needed for spacecraft and ground stations of various space agencies to work together.
The problem with communication over large distances is that the current standards are not designed for that. As is the protocol for the lion’s share of the internet traffic is used, tcp/ip, not suitable for interplanetary communication. A message from earth to Mars would be between 3,5 and 20 minutes on the road; a simple ping would already take twice as long.
In 2008 tested the NASA therefore, a proprietary protocol, disruption tolerant networking, taking into account the failure of connections. In the same year was the Mars Express of the ESA, all as a relay for a Marslander NASA. The Dutch astronaut André Kuipers from the International Space Station, by way of experiment, a robot on earth to control.