‘Outernet’ wants to free the Internet by sending it to Space

Outernet is an ambitious project that seeks to create a global WI-FI network that would provide the entire population of the world with free access to the Internet.

A group of american researchers is out to build a network of satelites that would provide Internet while at the same time protecting the users identity and data. The new network is thought of as a new version of short radiowaves or even a “space torrent”.

There are more WiFi devices in the world than people, yet only 60% of the global population has access to the wealth of knowledge found on the Internet. The price of smartphones and tablets is dropping year after year, but the price of data in many parts of the world continues to be unaffordable for the majority of global citizens. In some places, such as rural areas and remote regions, cell towers and Internet cables simply don’t exist. The primary objective of the Outernet is to bridge this global information divide.

Offering continuously updated web content also bypasses censorship of the Internet in countries that restrict access to independent media. Additionally, Outernet will offer a humanitarian notification system during emergencies and two-way Internet-access for a small set of users. The latter feature will be reserved for individuals and organizations that are unable to access conventional communication networks due to natural disasters or man-made restrictions to the free-flow of information.

Outernet consists of a constellation of hundreds of low-cost, miniature satellites in Low Earth Orbit. Each satellite receives data streams from a network of ground stations and transmits that data in a continuous loop until new content is received. In order to serve the widest possible global audience, the entire constellation utilizes UDP-based multicasting over WiFi. Although still not common, WiFi multicasting is a proven technology, especially when the data requires only one hop to reach the recipient.

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Citizens from all over the world, through SMS and feature-phone apps, participate in building the information priority list. Users of Outernet’s website also make suggestions for content to broadcast; lack of an Internet connection should not prevent anyone from learning about current events, trending topics, and innovative ideas.

The project should start running simulations this year, and in 2015 the initator want to start the construction phase.

Read more about this ambitious project here.