Patent ID: 7502382

Claim:
A satellite communication unit of a satellite communication network to multicast a message within said network, wherein said network includes a plurality of orbital planes with each plane including a plurality of orbiting satellite communication units with corresponding communication links, said satellite communication unit comprising: a communication device to transmit an outgoing message within said network and to receive an incoming message from said network; and a routing processor to route multicast messages from said satellite communication unit through said network to corresponding orbiting destination satellite communication units each varying position within a respective plane, wherein said satellite communication unit resides within a first network plane and said multicast messages are each associated with selected ones of said destination satellite communication units and a routing path through said network, and wherein said communication unit includes communication links including common plane links facilitating communications between said satellite communication unit and other satellite communication units within said first plane and cross plane links facilitating communications between said satellite communication unit and other satellite communication units in different planes, and said routing processor includes: a multicast module to determine an alternative path for a multicast message to a corresponding selected destination satellite communication unit based on enabled communication links of said satellite communication unit in response to a disabled communication link of said satellite communication unit associated with said routing path; a link module to periodically select said cross plane links at predetermined time intervals by determining distance values between said satellite communication unit and other orbiting satellite communication units in different planes and selecting said cross plane links based on at least said determined distance values to said other satellite communication units; and a transmission module to facilitate transmission of said multicast message along said associated routing path in response to an enabled communication link of said satellite communication unit associated with said routing path, and to facilitate transmission of said multicast message along said alternative path in response to a disabled communication link of said satellite communication unit associated with said routing path.