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The News

As we continue testing and improving our balloon-powered internet system in advance of launching commercial service in 2019, we recently achieved an exciting milestone by successfully establishing a network in the stratosphere that spanned 1,000km across seven balloons. Data was sent from the ground in Nevada through the balloon network and back.

If you were to build this network on the ground by laying fiber, for example, it would be expensive and difficult, especially in hard-to-reach areas where there may not be roads or power sources or where terrain might rough. In fact, this difficulty is one reason why many rural and remote areas lack access. By building this network in the sky, we can bypass many of those challenges and bring access to people who need it. As we look forward to commercial service, the ability to create these networks in the sky will be a key enabler of our efforts to connect people everywhere.

Loon’s approach to connectivity is fueled by technological advances like this one. You can read more about the milestone in this Medium post by Sal Candido, Loon’s Head of Engineering.

General Loon Information

Loon’s mission is to connect people everywhere by inventing and integrating audacious technologies. By redesigning the essential components of a cell tower so they can be carried by balloon 20 kilometers above Earth, Loon is making it possible to extend internet access to the billions who currently lack it. Using a network of balloons traveling on the edge of space, Loon works with mobile network operators to expand coverage to unserved and underserved populations, upgrade existing networks, and provide expedient coverage after natural disasters. You can find more information on our website here. Courtesy photos can be downloaded via Loon’s press site here.

Formerly a project of Google X, Loon became an independent business within Alphabet in July 2018. Alphabet is the parent company of Google. We are no longer known as “Project Loon.” We are now just “Loon.”

Loon Key Milestones

• 2011: Loon starts as a project at X
• 2013: Loon launches in New Zealand. A sheep farmer in Canterbury is the first person to connect to balloon-powered Internet. (blog post and video)
• 2014: Loon conducts its first LTE test, connecting a school in Brazil to the Internet for the first time (G+ post and video)
• 2015: The Loon team builds a custom built autolauncher that's capable of launching 20 balloons per day (video)
• 2016: One balloon spent 98 days over Peruvian airspace, making close to 20,000 separate altitude adjustments. This was the first time a balloon had stayed in the same region for an extended period of time. (G+ post)
• 2017: Loon’s smart software can now send small teams of balloons to form a cluster over a particular region where people need internet access. (video and blog post)
• 2017: Loon works with Telefonica to provide basic connectivity to people in Peru following floods (blog post)
• 2017: Working with AT&T and T-Mobile, Loon provides emergency connectivity to more than 250K following Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. (video and blog post)
• 2018: Loon graduates from X, becoming an independent business within Alphabet (blog post)
• 2018: Loon announces its first commercial partnership in Kenya (blog post)

Imagery

These courtesy assets are available for use with the credit: "Source: Loon." For more generic photos, please head over to www.loon.co/press.