A system and method for supporting Internet Protocol (IP) Multicast in mesh TDMA
satellite networks using a centralized route server architecture, which conserves
link bandwidth and minimizes delay. Individual satellite terminals perform forwarding
of multicast IP traffic to destination terminals based on information provided
by the route-server. Multicast routing protocols need to be supported only at the
route server, thus minimizing the CPU and memory resources required at the end
terminals. Channel capacity for multicast traffic can be statically or dynamically
assigned and takes full advantage of the broadcast nature of the medium.
