Dynamic Coalition on the Interplanetary Internet (DC-Interplanetary)

Introduction

Decades since the last visit to the Moon, humanity stands on the cusp of an exciting reentry into human and robotic space exploration - a global momentum is underway, with governments, space agencies, academia, and the private sector actively involved in efforts to reach the Moon and this time to establish sustained human presence on the lunar surface. In this context, numerous programs have been initiated worldwide to deploy communication network infrastructures and capabilities on and around the Moon. These efforts lay the foundation for what could evolve into an Interplanetary Internet. It is foreseeable that, in the not too distant future, diverse communication networks provided by various actors, including those of the private sector will converge in space starting from the Moon, marking the emergence of a "network of networks” in space.  

The Interplanetary Networking Special Interest Group (IPNSIG), a US 501c3 non-profit organization affiliated with the Internet Society has been actively working to facilitate the work of the Interplanetary Internet from 1998 (https://www.ipnsig.org/).

IPNSIG envisions that working toward a common network environment even in space will empower science, exploration and commercialization activities which will all become a benefit for humanity. This suggests a need for a governance ecosystem toward the establishment, operation and use of the Interplanetary Internet by conveying the Multistakeholderism that has matured over the evolution of Internet governance.

Today, IPNSIG has more than 1000 members across the globe involving space agencies (government), academia, technical community, private sectors and civil society across the globe, to facilitate a common, open and shared network environment even in space. In 2023, IPNSIG released a report laying out recommendations on governance of how the Interplanetary Internet ecosystem can be realized which can be used as a basis for future discussions at the “Dynamic Coalition on the Interplanetary Internet”.