NETWORK DISASTER RECOVERY

elecommunication networks are known for high reliability. This is true for normal operations and outages due to failures in the network associated with hardware, software, and so on. However, unexpected disasters (e.g., earthquakes, hurricanes, and terrorist attacks) do happen, and can have catastrophic impacts without excellent network contingency planning. This feature topic will address the various approaches to plan for and manage recovery following disasters, so that all concerned can mitigate these events effectively. Network disaster recovery (NDR) has become timelier in the last few years, with catastrophic natural disasters occurring in different parts of the world due to various causes, with different responses necessary. There is no telling when and where the next disaster will occur, but disasters will occur. This topic will continue to gain attention until properly mitigated. Communications is critical to survival and safety, as well as to the health and security of the world. With growing penetration of the Internet from residential use, combined with commercial and otherwise significant traffic being carried over backbone networks, impacts from service interruptions continue to be critical to many segments of society. Most technical articles in this area cover emerging technologies, standards, protocols, and networking solutions; but address less in terms of what to do when they fail, especially when such failures are numerous and catastrophic, and how to maintain critical communications. This feature topic of IEEE Communications Magazine aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the state of the art in technology, regulation, and standardization for NDR, and to present a view of research and industry challenges and opportunities in this area. NDR is mainly about recovering communications after a disaster, supporting communications during disaster recovery operations, and rapidly bringing life back to normal for customers of the network. At times, you need to work toward all three at once! And because triggering