Collaborate Disseminate
High-altitude platform stations (HAPS) are effective tools for communication and surveillance because they operate from the stratosphere, usually at around 12 miles (20 km) above the Earth, much closer than satellites. There are two types of HAPS: ligh… Continue reading “Sailing the winds”: How stratospheric balloons navigate the skies
Alphabet’s floating internet venture Project Loon may have been deflated, but its legacy looks set to live on through a new effort called Project Taara. The team has salvaged the technology to deliver internet connectivity with lasers, demonstrating th… Continue reading Lasers beam high-speed internet between cities through open air
Google’s parent company Alphabet has decided to ground a venture aimed at bringing internet connectivity to remote corners of the globe through stratospheric balloons. The firm announced today that its Project Loon will be winding down, with the costs … Continue reading Alphabet pulls the pin on its Project Loon internet balloons
An internet-beaming balloon has broken a flight record, staying aloft in the stratosphere for 312 days straight. Developed and launched by Loon, the balloon circumnavigated the globe over the Southern Hemisphere for 10 months, demonstrating the resilie… Continue reading Internet balloon spends record-breaking 312 days in the stratosphere
After a long series of test runs and stints serving disaster-struck populations in Puerto Rico and Peru, Alphabet’s internet-beaming Project Loon balloons have taken on their first commercial task. The company has now deployed the high-flying communica… Continue reading Alphabet’s internet balloons take on first commercial task in Kenya