Every mission into deep space has a communications system to carry commands and other information from Earth to a spacecraft or to a remote planet and to return scientific data to Earth [1]. Communications systems are central to the success of space missions. Large amounts of data need to be transferred (for example, nearly 25 TB in 2013 concerning the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO)), and the demand will grow in the future [1] because of the employment of more sophisticated instruments that will generate more data. This will require the availability of high network transfer rates. Satellite systems already have to cope with difficult communication challenges: long round trip times (RTTs); the likelihood of data loss due to errors on the communication link; possible channel disruptions; and coverage issues at high latitudes and in challenging terrain. These problems are magnified in space communications characterized by huge distances among network nodes, which imply extremely long delays and intermittent connectivity. At the same time, a space communications system must be reliable over time due to the long duration of space missions. Moreover, the importance of enabling Internet-like communications with space vehicles is increasing, realizing the concept of extended Future Internet, an IP (Internet Protocol) pervasive network of networks including interplanetary communication [2], where a wide variety of science information values are acquired through sensors and transmitted.The Delay-and Disruption Tolerant Network (DTN) architecture [3] introduces an overlay protocol that interfaces with either the transport layer or lower layers. Each node of the DTN architecture can store information for a long time before forwarding it. Thanks to these features, a DTN is particularly suited to cope with the challenges imposed by space communication. As summarized in [4], the origin of the DTN concept lies in a generalization of requirements identified for interplanetary networking (IPN), where latencies that may reach the order of tens of minutes, as well as limited and highly asymmetric bandwidth, must be faced.However, other scenarios in planetary networking, called "challenged networks," such as military tactical networking, sparse sensor networks, and networking in developing or otherwise communications-challenged regions, can also benefit from the DTN solution. Delays and disruptions can be handled at each DTN hop in a path between a sender and a destination. Nodes on the path can provide the storage necessary for data in transit before forwarding it to the next node on the path. In consequence, the contemporaneous end-to-end connectivity that Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and other standard Internet transport protocols require in order to reliably transfer application data is not required.In practice, in standard TCP/IP networks, ABSTRACTDelay-and Disruption Tolerant Networks (DTNs) are based on an overlay protocol and on the store-carry-forward paradigm. In practice, each DTN node can store information for a...

When designing routing protocols for space-based networks, we must take into consideration the unique characteristics of such networks. Since space-based networks are inherently sparse with constrained resources, one needs to design smart routing algorithms that use the resources efficiently to maximize network performance. In Space Exploration Missions, the trajectories and orbits of spacecraft are predetermined, thus communication opportunities are predictable. This a-priori knowledge can be used to the advantage of scheduling and routing. In this paper, we focus on analyzing Contact Graph Routing (CGR) for space-based networks. CGR makes use of the predictable nature of the contacts to make routing decisions. Mars and Lunar mission-like scenarios were used in our simulations to gather statistics on routing protocol performance in terms of delay and buffer usage. We provide improvements to the underlying cost function of CGR to avoid routing loops and suggest applying Dijkstra's shortest path algorithm for path selection. The cost function change was incorporated into the latest Internet Draft posted for CGR. Dijkstra's shortest path algorithm was successfully implemented and tested in NASA's Interplanetary Overlay Network (ION) implementation of the DTN protocols.

To support robotic and human explorations of Mars in the coming decade, the 2005 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) and the 2009 Mars Telecommunications Orbiter (MTO), as part of the Mars Network, will provide file transfer services to other Marscrafts using the CCSDS File Delivery Protocol (CFDP). CFDP was designed to provide file-based data and storage management, store-andforward relay, and reliable data transfer over space links characterized by large propagation delay and intermittent availability. This paper will describe how MTO can use CFDP to relay operational data and bulk science data for surface missions such as the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL). Performance metrics for latency and storage requirement are derived from mathematical analysis as well as simulation of anticipated MTO-MSL mission scenarios.

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NASA's demonstration of the successful transmission of relay data through the orbiting Mars Odyssey, Mars Global Surveyor, and Mars Express by the Mars Exploration Rovers has shown not only the benefit of using a relay satellite for multiple landed assets in a deep space environment but also the benefit of international standards for such an architecture. As NASA begins the quest defined in the Vision for Exploration with robotic and manned missions to the Moon, continues its study of Mars, and is joined in these endeavors by countries worldwide , landed assets transmitting data through relay satellites will be crucial for completing mission objectives. However, this method of data delivery will result in increased complexity in routing and prioritization of data transmission as the number of missions increases. Also, there is currently no standard method among organizations conducting such missions to return these data sets to Earth given a complex environment. One possibility for establishing such a standard is for mission designers to deploy protocols which fall under the umbrella of Delay Tolerant Networking (DTN). These developing standards include the Bundle Protocol (BP) which provides a standard, secure, store and forward mechanism designed for high latency and asymmetric communication links and the Licklider Transmission Protocol (LTP) which is used to provide a reliable deep space link transmission service.