Teams of engineering researchers at the University of Arkansas are in the midst of developing an emergency communication network that can maintain operation during natural disasters and provide critical warnings and geographical information to people affected by the disasters, according to an article on physorg.com.
Researchers are calling the system an emergency "mesh," made up of a network of nodes that blanket a geographical area. Similar to servers, each solar-powered node contains data on geographical information that can be downloaded or communicated node-to-node, the article says. If a node fails due to a lack of energy or the likelihood of extreme environmental conditions in the aftermath of a natural disaster, the mesh will automatically redistribute data to maintain service.