Google LOON: Balloon-powered internet for everyone

Shubhdeep Kaur, and Sukhchandan Randhawa

Citation: AIP Conference Proceedings 2034, 020006 (2018); doi: 10.1063/1.5067349

View online: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5067349
View Table of Contents: http://aip.scitation.org/toc/apc/2034/1
Published by the American Institute of Physics

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 Google LOON: Balloon-Powered Internet for Everyone

Shubhdeep Kaur a) and Sukhchandan Randhawab)

Computer Science and Engineering Department, Thapar University, Patiala, Punjab,India.

a)
Corresponding author: [email protected]
b)
[email protected]

Abstract. Providing Internet access is still considered as one of the major challenges at global level. Still two third of
population on globe does not have access to the Internet connectivity such as rural and remote areas. These areas do not have
proper infrastructure to provision Internet services. In order to address these issues, Project Loon is launched by Google X which
provides Internet connectivity to the users in remote or rural areas via special fabricated balloons which keeps on floating in the
stratosphere. An overview of working and technology involved in this innovative technological boon is presented in this research
article. Additionally, some commonly raised issues regarding the loon technology are also addressed.

Keywords: Project Loon, Balloon Powered Technology, Internet Connectivity, Loon.

INTRODUCTION
Internet access has been one of the most transformational technologies of our lifetimes. The Internet contributes more than
21% of GDP growth and in G20 economies, it accounts to 4% of national GDPs. The Internet has a huge impact on aspiring
countries. By 2017, it is expected that Internet generate $4.2 trillion in value, doubling that of 2012. Near about two thirds of the
world's current population doesn't have Internet connectivity and remaining one third population who has Internet connectivity
has very slow connections. In more than ⅔ of the southern hemisphere countries, the cost of connection exceeds a monthly
income. Today, near about 40% of the global population is having an access to the Internet connectivity whereas the percentage it
was less than 1% in 1995 as shown in Fig. 1 [1].

Internet Users in the World

2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
Internet Users
2010
2012
2014
2016
0 1E+09 2E+09 3E+09 4E+09

FIGURE 1. Internet usage growth rate.

International Conference on Inventive Material Science Applications

AIP Conf. Proc. 2034, 020006-1–020006-6; https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5067349
Published by AIP Publishing. 978-0-7354-1760-1/$30.00

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 It has been tenfold increase in the number of Internet users from 1999 to 2013. Fig. 1 shows the continuous rise in number of
Global Internet users per year since 1993. X (formerly Google X) started a research and development project named as
Project Loon with a goal of provisioning the Internet connectivity to remote and rural areas [2][3]. The users can connect
to the balloon network to avail this service via designated Internet antenna connected to their infrastructure. Right now,
each of Google's balloons cost tens of thousands of dollars to fly, but as Google pushes its research forward, that price will
likely go down. Google believes Project Loon could be an enormous business, even bigger than YouTube, which currently
pulls in about $4 billion in revenue per year.

WHAT IS PROJECT LOON?

Project Loon is an initiative taken by Google X which consists of network of balloons. These balloons travel on the
edge of space and are aimed to connect people in remote and rural areas[4].The main objective of this project Loon
is to minimize the coverage gaps and to provide continuous connectivity among the people even after disasters as
shown in Fig. 2.

FIGURE 2. Project Loon Balloons providing connectivity in distant areas

The major objective of launch was to organize a balloon fleet in order to provide Internet connectivity to user
base present on land. This effort is made possible with the presence of AutoLaunchers‟ capability of continuously
launch a new balloon in every half an hour[5]. The balloons have made test flights of 19 million kilometres since the
beginning of the project; with one balloon breaking the records by surviving for 190 days in the stratosphere. The
relay of high speed Internet starts from the telecom part near present on the ground to the closest balloon which
further relays it across the network and then back to user base present on the land terrain. The demonstration of data
transmission takes place in the range of 100 km in the stratosphere. The signals are reverted to the land with Internet
bandwidth of up to 10Mbps, via LTE phones.

AutoLaunchers "Allow us to move our whole operation to places that give us access to
favorable wind patterns that can help us provide Internet connectivity around the world."

THE TECHNOLOGY BEHIND PROJECT LOON

Project Loon balloons are floated in the stratosphere at a certain height which is usually twice as high as the
weather and airplanes. The stratosphere consists of many layers of wind. Every wind layer differs in speed and
direction. Loon balloons can travel anywhere; they can travel where ever they are required by ascending or
descending into a layer of blowing wind in the required route of travel. Due to the joint venture of Google Loon and
Telecommunications companies, the cellular spectrums are shared via which users can connect to the balloon

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network by their LTE-enabled devices and phones directly. The propagation of signal occurs over the balloon
network and is sent back to the comprehensive Internet of ground[6].

WHERE LOON HAS BEEN?

Project Loon has been started with an empirical pilot test in New Zealand in June 2013, where Loon technology
is tested by a small group of Project Loon pioneers. The results obtained from this pilot test, as well as successive
tests in California‟s Central Valley, Northeast Brazil and New Zealand, are analysed and utilized to make additional
improvements in the technology for the successive stages of the project.

DO YOU KNOW?
A Project Loon balloon was launched at the Christchurch launch event in June, 2013.
The first person who connected to the “Google Balloon Internet” after the initial
launch of 50 test balloons in the stratosphere was from Leeston, New Zealand. He
was among the first 50 volunteers who volunteered for becoming a pilot tester for the
Project Loon.

HOW LOON FLIES?

Project Loon balloons can fly 20 km above the Earth‟s surface approximately in the stratosphere. Software based
on algorithms are used to determine the direction of the balloons in which these need to direct and then directs each
balloon 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[7]. As the balloons are positioned over the edge of the space they are
usually deployed in the range of 10-60 km altitude, the uncommon issues related to engineering need to be
addressed: There is a need of more protection from UV radiations due to thin atmosphere layer. The air pressure is
just 1% of that at sea level. There is dramatic swing in temperature such as -80°C. Therefore, the balloon envelope is
carefully designed so that it can endure such kind of conditions. Project Loon takes the advantage of steady winds of
the stratosphere and stay beyond wildlife, airplanes and weather events.

DESIGNING OF A LOON

Project Loon balloons are designed and made in such a way that they can endure the conditions of the
stratosphere. In stratosphere, winds usually blow over 100 km/hr and temperature can drastically reach a low
temperature of -90°C. UV Radiation protection should also be considered while designing a balloon. A loon consists
of three main components namely: Envelope, solar panels and electronics. A balloon envelope is an inflatable part
of the balloon as shown in Fig. 3. A balloon envelope is deigned and made in such a way so that it can survive
around 100 days in the stratosphere before coming back to the ground in a guarded declination. These envelopes are
manufactured with the help of polyethylene plastic and are usually 15m meters wide and 12m in length when fully
inflated. To take a balloon out of service, first of all gas is released from the envelope to bring the balloon down to
Earth in a controlled descent. The electronics components need power to operate which is provided by an array of
solar panels. This array consists of a light-weight aluminium frame which supports a flexible plastic laminate. It
consists of high efficiency mono-crystalline solar cells. In order to capture the solar light effectively especially in
short winter days, the solar array is positioned at high angle at higher latitudes. The solar array is composed of two
parts which face each other in opposite directions and capture the energy in any direction as the balloons are
spinning in the wind slowly. Near about 100 Watts of power is produced by these panels in full sun. This amount of
power is sufficient to keep Loon‟s electronics in working condition while also charging a battery for use at night.

A small case contains the balloon‟s electronics and is hung below the puffed envelope. It appears like the
basket which is carried by a hot air balloon. The small box has circuit boards which can control the radio antennas

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and system to connect with other balloons. The lithium ion batteries are utilized to retain solar energy to keep these
balloons in operating mode all over the night. The location of each balloon is tracked using Global Positioning
System (GPS) by the Project Loon team. Coordination is made under the control of local air traffic control to bring
each balloon down to the ground safely in pre-planned sparsely populated areas. A parachute is also deployed
automatically to bring that particular balloon back to the ground in a safe landing way. The equipment is collected
by the recovery teams so that these balloons can be reused and recycled for future use.

FIGURE 3. Components of a Loon

HOW DOES A LOON CONNECT?

A balloon can provide connectivity to a ground area about 80 km in diameter via a wireless communications
technology called Long-Term Evolution (LTE). To use LTE, Project Loon partners with telecommunications
companies to share cellular spectrum so that people will be able to access the Internet everywhere directly from their
phones and other LTE-enabled devices[8]. Balloons relay wireless traffic from cell phones and other devices back to
the global Internet using high-speed links.

JOURNEY OF THE “LOON”

With a pilot test project Loon was launched in June 2013. During this
pilot test, thirty balloons are taken off from South Island in New
Zealand and Internet connectivity was provided to a very small
fraction of pilot testers. Then this was expanded further with the
inclusion of more number of users over a broader range of area.
Further, the main goal of Project Loon was to expand the pilot and
establishment of a ring of connectivity at different latitudes in the
Southern Hemisphere with no interruption, in order to provide a
continuous service to the pilot testers in these latitudes via balloon-
powered Internet.

SOME COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS REGARDING LOON TECHNOLOGY

Does a Balloon Crash?

The balloons remain floating beyond the height of commercial aircraft and rain in the stratosphere and underneath
satellites[9]. To avoid crashing of a balloon Google has equipped a parachute for a more controlled landing. The
balloons are designed to stay alive for "100+ days." If a balloon needs a repair or has reached its end of life, then
an orderly descent is arranged by controllers. Appropriate plans are made for specialized collection points of
Loon balloons. It is been recommended by Google that the equipment on board and the balloons can be recycled
and re-used. The designated jurisdictions are notified by Google, for instance ATC(Air Traffic Controller),

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throughout the launch and descent.

Visibility of balloon from the terrain: We may be able to visualize the balloons in certain weather conditions
from the ground. They are almost invisible to the naked eye. There are chances of visualizing such balloons
during ascent/descent, but there are very few chances that multiple balloons will be evident at any instant .

Speed of the Internet: In the curse of the New Zealand pilot test, Internet speed is expected to be as good as 3G.
How does the Loon network interact with standard Wi-Fi networks?
The balloons are not compatible with typical Wi-Fi networks and perform only with particular Loon Internet
antennas. The loon radios and antennas are designed in such a way that they can hear only Loon signals and they
filtrate the standard Wi-Fi33[10], although these signals also use similar frequencies. This is done to attain high
bandwidth over the longer distances convoluted(20+ km).

What is the coverage area provided by one balloon?

A ground region of near about 40 km in diameter is covered by a single balloon. Each balloon can provide
connectivity to hundreds of people at once.

What type of spectrum is utilized?

Loon utilizes unlicensed ISM spectrum to avoid interference at very low power. The devices which utilize the
ISM bands for communication should have high tolerance to endure any ISM equipment‟s interference.
Operations which are not licensed are supposed to use these bands, as these operations are designed to have
tolerance towards interference provided by any other device anyway. ISM bands utilization is supervised in USA
by Part 18 of the FCC rules[18]. Currently, Project loon utilizes ISM band (specifically 2.4 and 5.8 GHz bands)
which are available to use by anyone.

How is the integrity and security of data transmission preserved across the network in Loon?
In the process of transmission, data is encrypted automatically. Additionally, the Loon network can be accessed
only by designated Loon Internet antennas.

How is the mobility of these balloons controlled?

Loon Mission Control adjusts and controls the positioning of the Loon fleet by using a combination of human
oversight and automatic planning[11]. Additionally, the balloon vehicles perform some automatic flight control
tasks individually. These tasks include venting gas for the prevention of an explode or a parachute unfold in the
scenario of failure of the envelope of a balloon.

In what way does a user access Internet service from the balloons?
Signals are transmitted from the balloons to a specialized Internet antenna mounted to the side of a home or
workplace that use radio frequency technology. The Internet antenna is connected to a consumer grade router.
Web traffic which is transmitted via balloon network is forwarded to the ground stations ultimately, where it is
attached to the already existing Internet infrastructure, like local telecommunications partners and fiber cables.
What is time-period of the stay of a balloon in the air?
The balloons are manufactured in such a way that these balloons can survive in the stratosphere for more than
100 days in one go. Meanwhile the initial tests, the durations of flights were shorter, but recently it has marked
190 days lifetime by travelling a journey of 122000 Kms.

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 How do the balloons land?
Balloons can be administered by raising and lowering them at a particular altitude having winds in the direction
where we want the balloons to go[12]. The proper planning is done to get the balloons settled down in safe
recovery regions. For the safety purpose all balloons are equipped with parachutes to slow down their descent in
case of an unexpected landing. Foam bottoms are also attached to cushion the landing.

How does the collection of balloons take place after the landing?
The locations of the balloons are continuously monitored in the air and also when they land over the earth
surface. Ultimately, the plans are made to steer the balloons as they descend and to channelize these balloons to
get down to different collection points all over the globe.

Is there any danger of airplanes smashing the balloons?

The balloons take off at a certain height which is approximately two times higher as compared to the commercial
jetliners. So there is no possibility of clash of any of the 70,000 weather balloons presently deployed each year.

CONCLUSION

Project Loon is based on an innovative technology which has brought the revolutionary change in which the
people residing in remote or rural areas can easily connect to the Internet. It eliminates the need to lay down the
cable infra-structure in many areas such as hilly areas, rural and remote areas. Google™ Project is a scalable and
innovative in which loons are deployed in stratosphere above the earth surface to provide Internet connectivity,
which can survive near about 190 days. Still, there is need of improvements as leading technologies such as
Facebook Drones and outernet etc. are also leading technologies who have put forward their steps in the same area.

REFERENCES
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27-Jul-2018].
[2] “Loon for All – Project Loon – Google.” [Online]. Available: 27th July, 2018.
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pp. 20739–20746, (2016).
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[5] “Project Loon shows off autolauncher at work in Puerto Rico.” [Online]. Available:
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[11] M. Carlson, “Project Loon „Balloon-Powered Internet for Everyone,‟” pp. 1–9, (2015).
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