Blink Astro, LLC — National Aeronautics and Space Administration SBIR Phase I: Z8

Description

<p style="margin-left:0in; margin-right:0in">Delay/Disruption Tolerant Networking (DTN) is a communication routing protocol designed specifically for high-latency applications wherein relay nodes on a multi-hop network may appear and reappear at irregular intervals. Unlike more ubiquitous TCP/IP network communications protocols that depend on known and &ldquo;always on&rdquo; routing paths, DTN is well suited to space-to-space applications where individual nodes in the network may be blocked or damaged. DARPA and NASA have invested significant research and even flight test demonstrations to further develop this technology.&nbsp;</p><p>As described in this proposal, Blink Astro, LLC proposes to develop a small, affordable two-way radio transceiver that has built-in (native) hardware and software support for DTN communications protocols. Once developed and demonstrated, this new CubeSat-scale transceiver will be compatible with small satellites applications ranging from deep space swarms to commercial Low Earth Orbit (LEO) constellations.</p><p>&nbsp;</p>