Net reaches out to final frontier

Iris will allow troops to communicate over the net from remote regions

A programme to kick-start the use of internet communications in space
has been announced by the US government.

The Department of Defense's Iris project will put an internet router
in space by the start of 2009.

It will allow voice, video and data communications for US troops using
standards developed for the internet.

Eventually Iris could extend the net into space, allowing data to flow
directly between satellites, rather than sending it via ground
stations.

"Iris is to the future of satellite-based communications what Arpanet
was to the creation of the internet in the 1960s," said Don Brown, of
Intelsat General, one of the companies who will build the platform.

Arpanet (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), the predecessor
of the internet, was developed by the United States Department of
Defense.

Remote access

The Iris (Internet Router Protocol in Space) project has been given
the go ahead after winning funding from the US Department of Defense,
under its Joint Capability Technology Demonstration (JCTD) programme.

The programme aims to develop advanced concepts and put "innovative
concepts into the hands of war fighters in the field."

The Iris project is one of seven that has been given funding this
year. Others include development of smart sensors and counter
camouflage technology.


Iris is a three year programme to develop a satellite platform and
"space hardened router".

A router is a piece of hardware that directs packets of information
around a network.

The specially designed equipment will be developed by network
specialist Cisco while the geostationary satellite, IS-14, will be
built by Intelsat.

When launched in 2009 it will allow troops to communicate over the
internet from the remotest regions from Europe Africa and the
Americas.

"Iris extends the internet into space, integrating satellite systems
and the ground infrastructure for warfighters, first responders and
others who need seamless and instant communications," said Bill
Shernit, CEO of Intelsat general.

After initial testing the satellite will be opened up for commercial
use.

Cyber space

Launching Iris could also signal the beginning of the development of
the internet in space.

At the moment most satellites have to communicate with one another
through ground stations or via radio signals to a relay satellite.


Deploying routers on satellites would allow them to communicate
directly with one another using common internet standards, known as
internet protocol (IP).

"The Iris architecture allows direct IP routing over satellite,
eliminating the need for routing via a ground-based teleport," said Mr
Brown.

It also raises the possibility of routinely transferring data through
the satellite network, rather than ground based cables.

"This is a logical extension of radio communication between
satellites," said Paul Stephens of DMC international imaging, a
subsidiary of Surrey Satellites in the UK.

Along with Cisco and US space agency Nasa, it put one of the first
routers in space onboard the UK-DMC satellite, part of the Disaster
Monitoring Constellation (DMC) used for observing the Earth for major
disasters.

The DMC router uses the latest IP networking standards to send
critical images to ground stations for use by rescue workers.

With IP becoming more prevalent for use in space, Nasa and internet
pioneer Vint Cerf have also investigated the possibility of using
internet technology across the solar system.

Although some work has been carried out on the necessary standards and
protocols, no definite schedule has been announced for this
interplanetary internet.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6551807.stm