The work of IP pioneer Vinton Cerf and a group of NASA engineers may offer
students a chance at space exploration.
Cerf said the NASA group expects to have the first Interplanetary Internet
links in place by 2008, although that schedule is under review at NASA’s
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. One of the first steps toward
the Interplanetary Internet is the proposed Mars Network, which is being
considered as necessary communications and navigation infrastructure for
future Mars exploration in light of the loss of NASA’s Mars Polar Lander
in December.
Two options for the Mars Network are being explored, said Chad Edwards,
manager of the Mars Network project office at JPL. One is launching six
microsatellites into a low Mars orbit that would act as relay satellites
for spacecraft on or near the surface of the planet. The small satellites
would increase data return so that the hardware and power on exploratory
spacecraft could be much simpler and lighter, he said.
The other option is a Mars Area Stationary Relay Satellite, which would
be larger and in a higher orbit around Mars. The Marsat, which would be
similar to the geostationary satellites that provide direct video broadcast
to Earth, would provide a continuous link with the surface of Mars, enabling
scientific spacecraft to stream high-bandwidth data and video of the planet
through the satellite, Edwards said.
