Intelsat General Corp. has achieved a number of key milestones with a satellite payload that will demonstrate Internet Routing In Space (IRIS) for the U.S. military.

IRIS will serve as a computer processor in the sky, merging communications received on various frequency bands and retransmitting them to multiple users, based upon data instructions embedded in the uplink.

Supporting network services for voice, video and data communications, the IRIS payload will also enable U.S. military units and allied forces to communicate with one another using Internet protocol and existing ground equipment.

The IRIS payload will interconnect one C-band and two Ku-band coverage areas. The IRIS architecture and design allow for flexible IP packet routing that can be dynamically reconfigured to maximize end-user capability. With the on-board processor routing the up-and-down communications links, the IRIS payload is expected to enhance satellite performance and reduce signal degradation from atmospheric conditions.
The Intelsat General Corp. teamed with Cisco Systems and SEAKR Engineering Inc. to create the payload for IS-14. This is the satellite being built for Intelsat by Space Systems/Loral and is planned for launch in the second quarter of 2009 aboard an Atlas V rocket. The satellite will be placed in a geostationary orbit at 45 degrees west longitude thereby covering Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

IRIS is a joint capability technology demonstration with the Department of Defense. It is a three-year program that enables the DoD to collaborate with Intelsat General and the company's industry team to demonstrate and assess the utility of the IRIS capability.

Don Brown, vice president of Intelsat General, says that they plan to deliver an IP router to space as a hosted payload in less than three years from the time the project was first approved.

The IRIS payload has passed its critical design review and interfaces have been verified for initial assembly and integration with the spacecraft bus. Additionally, the payload converters necessary to convert from RF to baseband are in final acceptance testing. During the next three months, IRIS will undergo functional and thermal vacuum testing.

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