AirRaid wrote:

>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
>
>
>
Great, Spam email from space.........