Linux is powering the infrastructure behind a distributed global network hosting images of the current Mars Rover and the European Space Agency's recent Rosetta comet chaser mission.

Web content delivery company Speedera Networks is using Linux running on Hewlett Packard ProLiant DL360 servers to host content from Nasa, the European Space Agency and websites including Fox Broadcasting, Sony Music Entertainment, Network Associates and Macromedia.

The company said it has created the largest Linux-based distributed network to provide the resilience and scalability needed to deal with the huge traffic demands on the websites it hosts.

According to Nasa, the number of hits on its website has exceeded 7.5 billion during the first two months of 2004, with traffic peaking at nearly 7Gb per second in January alone.

Ajit Gupta, president and chief executive officer of Speedera Networks, said in a statement: "HP ProLiant servers are optimised for Linux and deliver the performance and availability we need to successfully deliver content without fail."

Jeanne Holm, Nasa's portal project manager, added: "HP's commitment to space has been gaining momentum over the past 30 years, beginning with Apollo and continuing with support of the Mars Exploration Rovers through vendors like Speedera Networks, which is delivering content for our web portal."

Mars Rover Mission images

European Space Agency