[LINK] Project Loon

[stephen at melbpc.org.au]

BALLOON-POWERED INTERNET FOR EVERYONE

 http://www.google.com/loon


Many of us think of the Internet as a global community. But two-thirds of 
the world’s population does not yet have Internet access. 

Project Loon is a network of balloons traveling on the edge of space, 
designed to connect people in rural and remote areas, help fill coverage 
gaps, and bring people back online after disasters.

Project Loon balloons float in the stratosphere, twice as high as airplanes 
and the weather. They are carried around the Earth by winds and they can be 
steered by rising or descending to an altitude with winds moving in the 
desired direction. 

People connect to the balloon network using a special Internet antenna 
attached to their building. The signal bounces from balloon to balloon, 
then to the global Internet back on Earth.

Project Loon starts in June 2013 with an experimental pilot in New Zealand. 
A small group of Project Loon pioneers will test the technology in 
Christchurch and Canterbury.

Project Loon balloons travel around 20 km above the Earth’s surface in the 
stratosphere. Winds in the stratosphere are generally steady and slow-
moving at between 5 and 20 mph, and each layer of wind varies in direction 
and magnitude. 

Project Loon uses software algorithms to determine where its balloons need 
to go, then moves each one into a layer of wind blowing in the right 
direction. By moving with the wind, the balloons can be arranged to form 
one large communications network.

Project Loon’s balloon envelopes are made from sheets of polyethylene 
plastic and stand fifteen meters wide by twelve meters tall when fully 
inflated. They are specially constructed for use in superpressure balloons, 
which are longer-lasting than weather balloons because they can withstand 
higher pressure from the air inside when the balloons reach float altitude. 

A parachute attached to the top of the envelope allows for a controlled 
descent and landing whenever a balloon is ready to be taken out of service.

Each unit’s electronics are powered by an array of solar panels that sits 
between the envelope and the hardware. In full sun, these panels produce 
100 Watts of power - enough to keep the unit running while also charging a 
battery for use at night. 

By moving with the wind and charging in the sun, Project Loon is able to 
power itself using only renewable energy sources.

A small box containing the balloon’s electronic equipment hangs underneath 
the inflated envelope, like the basket that is carried by a hot air 
balloon. This box contains circuit boards that control the system, radio 
antennas to communicate with other balloons and with Internet antennas on 
the ground, and batteries to store solar power so the balloons can operate 
during the night.

Each balloon can provide connectivity to a ground area about 40 km in 
diameter at speeds comparable to 3G. 

For balloon-to-balloon and balloon-to-ground communications, the balloons 
use antennas equipped with specialized radio frequency technology. Project 
Loon currently uses ISM bands (specifically 2.4 and 5.8 GHz bands) that are 
available for anyone to use.

The Project Loon pilot test begins June 2013 on the 40th parallel south. 

Thirty balloons, launched from New Zealand’s South Island, will beam 
Internet to a small group of pilot testers. The experience of these pilot 
testers will be used to refine the technology and shape the next phase of 
Project Loon.

If you live in New Zealand and are interested in learning how to become a 
Project Loon pilot tester for a future set of launches, please sign up.

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<http://manilastandardtoday.com/2013/06/17/google-to-beam-internet-from-
balloons/>

Google revealed top-secret plans Saturday to send balloons to the edge of 
space with the lofty aim of bringing Internet to the two-thirds of the 
global population currently without web access.

Scientists from the technology giant released up to 30 helium-filled test 
balloons flying 20 kilometers above Christchurch in New Zealand Saturday, 
carrying antennae linked to ground base stations.

While still in the early stages, Project Loon hopes eventually to launch 
thousands of balloons to provide Internet to remote parts of the world, 
allowing the more than four billion people with no access to get online.

It could also be used to help after natural disasters, when existing 
communication infrastructure is affected.

“Project Loon is an experimental technology for balloon-powered Internet 
access,” the company said on its latest project from its clandestine Google 
(x), “where we work on radical, sci-fi-sounding technology solutions to 
solve really big world problems”.

“Balloons, carried by the wind at altitudes twice as high as commercial 
planes, can beam Internet access to the ground at speeds similar to today’s 
3G networks or faster,” it added.

“It is very early days, but we think a ring of balloons, flying around the 
globe on the stratospheric winds, might be a way to provide affordable 
Internet access to rural, remote, and underserved areas down on earth 
below, or help after disasters, when existing communication infrastructure 
is affected.”

It works by ground stations connecting to the local Internet infrastructure 
and beaming signals to the balloons, which are self-powered by solar 
panels.

The balloons, which once in the stratosphere will be twice as high as 
commercial airliners and barely visible to the naked eye, are then able to 
communicate with each other, forming a mesh network in the sky.

Users below have an Internet antenna they attach the side of their house 
which can send and receive data signals from the balloons passing overhead.

Some 50 people were chosen to take part in the trial and were able to link 
to the Internet.

The first person to get Google Balloon Internet access was Charles Nimmo, a 
farmer and entrepreneur in the small town of Leeston who signed up for the 
experiment.

He told the New Zealand Herald he received Internet access for about 15 
minutes before the transmitting balloon he was relying on floated out of 
range.

“It’s been weird,” he told the newspaper. “But it’s been exciting to be 
part of something new.”

Google’s ultimate goal is to have a ring of balloons—each the length of a 
small light aircraft when fully inflated—circling the Earth, ensuring there 
is no part of the globe that cannot access the web.

But Richard DeVaul, chief technical architect at Google (x), cautioned that 
“it’s awfully too early to think about covering the entire planet”.

The next step might be to make a ring of balloons around the same latitude 
as New Zealand, he added, to extend coverage to countries such as 
Australia, South Africa and Argentina.

“We think hundreds of balloons, maybe 300 or 400, might be necessary to 
complete that ring,” DeVaul said.

Google did not say how much it was investing in the project.

“The idea may sound a bit crazy – and that’s part of the reason we’re 
calling it Project Loon – but there’s solid science behind it,” Google 
said, but added: “This is still highly experimental technology and we have 
a long way to go.”

Project leader Mike Cassidy told reporters that if successful, the 
technology might allow countries to leapfrog the expense of installing 
fiber-optic cable.

“It’s a huge moonshot, a really big goal to go after,” he said.

“The power of the Internet is probably one of the most transformative 
technologies of our
time.”

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