On Nov. 27, NASA officials announced that a group of engineers took and successfully sent a selfie from the McMurdo Station in Antarctica to the International Space Station via the Tracking and Data Relay System.
Unlike familiar computer-to-computer IP connections, disruption-tolerant networking accommodates temporary disruptions as well as long delays, thus making it an ideal candidate for interstellar messages.
“The Antarctic is an excellent analog for space operations,” Patrick Smith, technology-development manager with the U.S. Antarctic Program, said in a statement to Space.com. “Researchers are conducting important scientific investigations, operating in extreme conditions, with minimal infrastructure, so it’s not surprising that we are using NASA space technology to advance science in the Antarctic.”
