ISS Launches First Permanent Node of "Interplanetary Internet" 121
schliz writes "Researchers developing the 'Interplanetary Internet' have launched its first permanent node in space via a payload aboard the International Space Station. The network is based on a new communications protocol called Delay/Disruption Tolerant Networking (DTN). It will be tested heavily this month, and could give astronauts direct Internet access within a year. The Interplanetary Internet is the brainchild of Vint Cerf ('father of the Internet'), among others. Last year, NASA tested the technology on the Deep Impact spacecraft." Update: 07/13 20:01 GMT by KD : If by "permanent" we mean seven years.
It will be tested heavily this month... (Score:4, Funny)
Re:It will be tested heavily this month... (Score:5, Interesting)
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Well at least the DMCA should not apply in Space, should it?
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The Berne convention might :)
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No, they're going to let slashdotters whine about it, and see if it cracks.
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lol (Score:5, Funny)
i am in ur space station, trollin' ur boards!
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True, but there's a certain je ne sais quoi to being able to simply drop a piece of space junk on that asshole who just ruined your thread.
"Permanent"??? (Score:4, Insightful)
If you want them to be, get off your butts and tell that to the Whitehouse and your Congresscritters. Because they obviously don't know.
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STOP WASTING OUR MONEY
I think that's the whole point of bringing it down.
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nope, I think they should post it on eBay. They can even offer (ballistic) shipping worldwide. Winner of the bid assumes full liability for any damages during and after re-entry and should make arrangements for insurance or alternative shipping method if desired.
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I read somewhere NASA plans to de-orbit the ISS in 2016 due to budgetary concerns...
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I read somewhere NASA plans to de-orbit the ISS in 2016 due to budgetary concerns... /. main page, it's three stories higher on the screen. TFA for that one references a couple of news publications' stories on the topic.
You probably read it here on slashdot. In my FF tab showing the
(Yeah, I read that one earlier than this one, too. They both appeared on my screen at the same time. I guess I was busy and didn't refresh /. for over two hours. ;-)
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I read somewhere NASA plans to de-orbit the ISS in 2016 due to budgetary concerns... /. main page, it's three stories higher on the screen.
You probably read it here on slashdot. In my FF tab showing the
Er, whoosh? Also - jo42, jc42 - is this some new meme?
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If you missed the other article, this "permanent' node will be de-orbited in 2016.
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It makes me think of Gremlins, in suits.
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In Soviet Russia, Kremlins Zap YOU!
It is only a matter of time... (Score:3, Funny)
Before we'll have our first bittorrent tracker on mars.
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Be fun for the RIAA to try and seize that one.
Delay/Disruption Tolerant Networking? (Score:3, Interesting)
Hmmmmm. Will we get an earthly version of DTN that ensures I can successfully download large files over TOR? Now, *that* would be useful.
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He's not talking about P2P over Tor, he's talking about large files. Since the web is designed to handle links without caring about their size, Tor's solution is flawed if it can't handle them. When's the last time you saw a link with a size attribute, or a "too big for anonymous networks" flag along with the href?
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No, TOR sucks because of moron ISPs capping upload bandwidth. Were that fixed TOR would run very reliably.
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There are plenty of large files on the net that have NOTHING to do with P2P, and look entirely like any other file or link until you click on them (and conceptually ARE entirely like any other link, regardless of the larger size). PDFs, for instance, can be any size, and even the same content in PDFs can vary hugely in filesize just depending on which PDF generator is used. High-res astronomy photos that enthusiasts might need or care to share with friends, etc. Tor could legitimately be used for downloa
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That's not for you to decide. What about posting information requires anonymity? To you, maybe nothing. To someone in an oppressive environment, maybe everything. Maybe some kid's parent thinks astronomy and astrology are the same thing, for instance.
More importantly, there is a well-known security principle that if only the sensitive information is encrypted, it's pretty much painting a target on your back. Imagine if all your letters w
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You shouldn't assume I mean p2p because I don't. There are plenty of file servers out there set up to be accessible via Tor. Some have mp3s, some have movies. Some have plans for overthrowing the government or blowing up the world. I've never used p2p over Tor. I have, however, tried to download files ranging from a meg to a gig in size with varying degrees of success. I've never, despite trying at all hours of the day and on all days of the week, been able to complete the download of a 1-gig file ove
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Interesting definition of p2p you've got there.
I'll be playing with wget and gwget tonite.
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I'm talking about simple file servers. There are file depositories out there (FTP servers and others) that serve out gigs of data in response to requests a few kilobytes in size. I'm not doing p2p in the sense that no data on my machine is accessed by anyone else. I'm not running any software that employs bit torrent or any other file sharing protocol. People do, after all, often maintain servers that hand out movies, music, and other files simply out of the goodness of their hearts, without requiring a
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Until Linux and the *BSDs have DTN as standard, you're not likely to see anything serious using it. DTN could be seriously useful in a lot of circumstances, but look at the hassle getting multicasting or IPv6 - and these are protocols that have long been supported both in ISPs routers and the OS' in people's homes.
Define "permanent" (Score:5, Informative)
Don't slashdot that server.... (Score:3, Funny)
Porn (Score:1)
So, how's going to set the record for sending the first pornography packet into outer space?
Traffic capacity? (Score:1, Interesting)
I would be interested in reading some specifications about what traffic capacity this node has.
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Can't wait... (Score:2, Redundant)
... to FTP to Mars.
As Jerry Seinfeld would say (Score:3, Funny)
Do we really need the Internet on the ISS? (Score:2, Insightful)
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First impressions. (Score:1)
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Have you seen Ron Jeremy? Pretty aint exactly a word I've heard used to describe him.
Serious Lag times (Score:1)
Last Post (Score:4, Funny)
What protocols is it using? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:What protocols is it using? (Score:5, Informative)
it uses, of course, DTN, as the protocol. DTN sits in between IP and the other layers (UDP,TCP).. Think of it is as intelligent "store and forward" routing for long latency or sporadic links. It has a lot of flavors, but ultimately, you transfer a bundle of data to another node (perhaps on a predetermined schedule), when the other node agrees it's got it, "custody" of the bundle transfers.
The physical layer is standard microwave for space (S and K band for station, X band and Ka band for deep space links of the future). It can also be carried over wired media (or heck, avian carriers as well)
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Re:What protocols is it using? (Score:4, Informative)
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Though using wired (or RFC 1149- or 2549-style) connections into space is not advised.
What? (Score:2, Insightful)
Sorry, I don't see how this technology and "using the Internet" are at all related.
It's a store-and-forward technology designed to allow interruptions of seconds, days, weeks, months, etc. in communication. How does that relate to the modern Internet or being able to "post on Twitter"? What you're saying is that I can request a webpage and (via suitable protocol-translation at some gateway presumably back on Earth) eventually my request will be sent - TCP handshaking is out of the window, timeouts will de
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Worried about privacy? Just PKI encrypt + sign the whole request so you know where it came from, and who it is destined to, and you don't need the age old "sessions" anymore. Sessions only make sense in a system that relies on synchronous communications.
Now of course, we can't ensure delivery, but then again, I don't see how that would be
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> What this actually *might* be is a very, very delay-tolerant email setup... we have one
> of those... it's called "retry and exponential backoff".
It's called UUCP.
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Sounds like FIDO.NET for outer space.
Think of it... (Score:2)
...like FTP-by-email, but for any Internet protocol, not just FTP.
This... (Score:1)
... will allow Goatse to spread even further...
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Link plz! :P
DTN is ok, I've been testing it for a year now... (Score:1)
ping times (Score:1)
Boon to astronauts (Score:2)
Cool protocol.. but sounds a bit familiar... (Score:2)
I liked the idea, and went on to read more about the protocol.
I can definitely see some uses for this on earth.
One example would be on cruising sailboats that only have occasional access to inexpensive wifi hotspots, and the rest of the time have to use slow SSB links. Another
example might be for use in automotive networking, where a car sometimes has access to a real network, sometimes a cellular, and sometimes just some low-fi sattelite.
But really, this all sounds eerily familiar. Could if be FidoNet and
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> I still want to see it implemented in the next Linux kernel though.
This does not belong in the kernel.
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This does not belong in the kernel.
Have you looked at the .config file lately? THERE is A LOT that shouldn't be in the kernel..
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Given that DTN sits between two layers already in the kernel, it'd be stupid to have DTN in userspace. (Stupid and potentially dangerous, as you then have a userspace app injecting data into a fairly low level part of the kernel in a way that would have to bypass a lot of safeguards.)
As for stuff that's in the kernel that shouldn't be - want to give some examples? I can think of a few things that are probably not great, but I can't think of anything that absolutely shouldn't be there.
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I donno, MFM hard drive support? It probably doesn't even work anymore...
Say what?! (Score:2)
It sits between the Ethernet and TCP/UDP layers. Where the hell do you think it's going to sit? On top of the monitor? The only way you could add DTN except in the kernel is via netfilter (which would make this not only Linux-specific but also firewall technology specific, as netfilter is being replaced).
Adding DTN in userspace via netfilter would (a) add some very stupid and unnecessary context switches, and (b) totally subvert the purpose for which netfilter is designed, not for technical reasons but poli
DVDs (Score:1)
I thought... (Score:2)
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Think of it like a game of Frogger: TCP only knows how to play by waiting until all of the cars and logs are line up just right so it can jump all of the way across at once. DTN plays like a human player
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This makes it great for wireless networks in which routes are highly variable or not otherwise knowable in advance. Routing protocols [psu.edu] already exist for such indeterminate networks [psu.edu], but if the protocol you're transmitting has too short a timeout, it's useless. You'd lose far too many packets and never get any work done.
So, for such networks, you'd need DTN. DTN would also be useful when using Mobile IP, where the two networks you're crossing between have a gap between them, so there isn't 100% coverage. Then
In Space.... (Score:1)
...no one can hear you get fragged.
(To you /.er's that love to correct people: I know there will be latency issues....shut up.)
iGalactic Internet (Score:1)
Not That Permanent (Score:2)
In space... (Score:1)
How is this "Interplanetary"? (Score:2)
Interplanetary is defined as, "existing or occurring between planets" [answers.com] or "being or occurring between the planets or between a planet and the sun." [reference.com]
How is is a setup between a space station and a planet interplanetary?
Most important question: (Score:1)
Vint (Score:2)
If Vint Cerf is the 'father of the Internet', I wonder who the mother is ...
interesting browsing experience (Score:2)
Error: Connection timed out.
20 minutes later...
TCP packet from blah.com.mars just arrived.
WoW (Score:2)
RIAA in SPAAAACE (Score:2)
1) Give astronaut CD of latest pop music craze.
2) Have astronaut rip CD to MP3.
3) Create and host torrent of album from ISS.
4) Make RIAA go to orbit to subpoena astronaut.
5) ???
6) Profit!
This might actually help us get a real commercial space program going.
Ob. comment (Score:1)
All your space stations are belong to us.
-Z
Email Account (Score:1)
Can I get an email account on their server? Maybe imscarr@iss.et ?
Sounds a lot like... (Score:1)
Old is new again (Score:1)
I'm so old I remember being taught algorithms for ancient reel-to-reel computers (think background of stuff in the '60s TV show Lost in Space) for merging, sorting, and so on, giant databases based when having access to 1, 2, or 3 reels and a severely limited amount of RAM. Efficient in that context can be way different from the modern World of Plenty programming.
Six hundred years ago, I once made a joke somewhere about how bad the lag would be playing a game of Quake intercontinentally using courierred ta
Makes interplanetary missions more interesting (Score:1)
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pings in space.
With truly astronomical round-trip times.
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