Internet connections in remote areas - Google buys Titan #solar drones

Titan solar drones: #ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. New Mexico

Titan Aerospace chairman and CEO Vern Raburn

says he will remain the head of the company, now owned by Google Inc., as it develops its solar-powered drones.

Google announced on Monday that it bought Titan

Aerospace of Moriarty

That local company is developing solar-powered drones at the Moriarty Municipal Airport. Google could potentially use them for everything from extending Internet connectivity in remote places to providing monitoring services in disaster situations.

Solar-powered drones as an inexpensive replacement for communications satellites.

Rather than fly to space, the drones would fly to near-orbit altitude of about 65,000 feet. That’s higher than planes normally fly and much lower than where satellites generally operate.

The company calls them commercial atmospheric satellites, or “atmostats,” and they could greatly lower the cost of launching and accessing satellite services.

The drones are embedded with thousands of photovoltaic cells, which power the aircraft during the day while storing energy in onboard battery banks to continue operating at night. That will allow the craft to remain continuously airborne for up to five years, according to Titan.

Facebook has opted instead to acquire Ascenta –

a U.K.-based aerospace company also developing solar-powered drones – for $20 million. Internet by Laser to remote areas ? bloomberg.com/video

source/links: titanaerospace.com |

computerworld.com | abqjournal.com