Interplanetary Internet facts for kids

The Mars Telecommunications Orbiter could be a central point for an interplanetary internet on Mars.

An interplanetary internet is a big idea for the future! It doesn't exist yet. When people talk about it, they are trying to solve a huge challenge. This challenge is how to make the internet work between different planets, like Earth and Mars.

How the Internet Works

The internet on Earth works pretty simply. Computers connect to each other and share a network. Imagine sending a message from your computer to a friend's. Your computer sends a small piece of information, called a packet. Your friend's computer then sends a message back saying it got the packet. This works fast because messages travel in less than a second.

The Challenge of Space

Now, imagine sending that same message to Mars. It would take about ten minutes for the message to get there! Then, it would take another ten minutes for a reply to come back. That's a total of twenty minutes for one message! This long delay means we need a completely new way for computers to talk across space. This is the main problem scientists are trying to solve with the interplanetary internet. It's a very exciting new idea!

Connecting in Earth Orbit

Places close to Earth, like Earth orbit, can use the regular internet. For example, the International Space Station (ISS) has been connected to the internet since January 22, 2010. That's when the first tweet was sent from space without help from Earth!

Space Station Experiments

The ISS is also a great place to test new space internet ideas. NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) have used an experimental version of the interplanetary internet there. They used it to control a special rover. This rover was located in Germany, but it was controlled from the ISS! This experiment used a new system called the DTN protocol. This technology could one day help people communicate from habitats or bases on other planets.

Images for kids

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  The speed of light limits how fast messages can travel. Here, light takes 1.26 seconds to go from Earth to the Moon. Messages in an interplanetary internet would have much longer delays than on Earth.

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  A simple look at how the Interplanetary Internet could work, showing communication from Mars to Earth.

See also

In Spanish: Internet interplanetario para niños