Applicability of delay tolerant networking to distributed satellite systems

Currently, a trend towards distributed small satellite missions is emerging using cooperating satellites to achieve joint mission objectives, e.g. for earth observation. Communication is a key feature when cooperation between satellites is desired. Typically those satellite networks are affected by slow data rates, high packet loss and intermittent connectivity. To address these challenges the store-and-forward approach of the delay tolerant networking (DTN) concept is investigated in this article. Network simulations of typical scenarios were carried out and evaluated to derive statements about the applicability of the DTN approach to networks in low earth orbits.

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