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LoonLoon 

Expanding internet connectivity with stratospheric balloons
Challenge
Challenge


BILLIONS OF PEOPLE ACROSS THE GLOBE STILL DON’T HAVE RELIABLE, AFFORDABLE ACCESS
TO THE INTERNET

The internet has transformed the way the world communicates, learns, governs,
and exchanges ideas, but billions of people across the globe lack reliable,
affordable access. Loon was a radical approach to expanding internet
connectivity. Instead of trying to extend the internet with traditional
ground-based infrastructure like fiber optics cables or cell phone towers, Loon
took to the sky with a network of balloons. Loon's balloons traveled along the
edge of space to expand internet connectivity to rural areas, fill coverage
gaps, and improve network resilience in the event of disaster.


LOON SPENT NINE YEARS DEVELOPING TECHNOLOGIES TO DELIVER CONNECTIVITY FROM
THE STRATOSPHERE

Loon balloons traveled along the edge of space to deliver internet to the
ground below
Journey
Journey


CONNECTING THE UNCONNECTED

The Loon team began with a question: Could a network of stratospheric
internet-beaming balloons be the radical idea that might finally bring abundant,
affordable internet access, not just to the next billion, but to the last
billion? To the last unconnected communities and those least able to pay?

To explore this idea the Loon team started out flying (and chasing) early
prototypes through California's central valley to see if the idea had promise.
In 2013 the team found some friendly New Zealanders who were the first in the
world to connect to the internet via a stratospheric balloon. These early tests
demonstrated Loon’s promise, and after more development, the team beamed the
first LTE connection from the stratosphere to a school in Brazil, showing that
it was possible for balloons to connect directly to people’s phones. Over the
years Loon knocked over one technical hurdle after another, doing things
previously thought impossible — like using lasers to beam connectivity (and a
copy of the film Real Genius) between balloons in the stratosphere, or creating
a mesh network in the sky.

Scrappy prototype
One of the team’s earliest prototypes, 2011
Launch at dawn
Preparing Loon balloons at dawn for launch in New Zealand, 2013
Flying high in New Zealand
A balloon aloft in New Zealand, 2013
Testing in Brazil
Using Loon balloons to connect a classroom in Brazil, 2014
Balloon-to-balloon communication
Testing free space optical communications in the lab. This technology became the
basis for Project Taara, 2014
Disaster response in Peru
The Loon team working to bring ground stations back online to connect balloons
after flooding in Peru, 2017
Puerto Rico launch site
Loon begins providing emergency connectivity services to Puerto Rico in the
aftermath of Hurricane Maria, 2017
Looking at Loons in Kenya
Loon delivers internet-by-balloon to customers in Kenya, July 2020
Loon equipment
The Loon equipment used to deliver connectivity in Kenya, 2020
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Scrappy prototype
One of the team’s earliest prototypes, 2011
Scrappy prototype
One of the team’s earliest prototypes, 2011
Scrappy prototype
One of the team’s earliest prototypes, 2011
Launch at dawn
Preparing Loon balloons at dawn for launch in New Zealand, 2013
Launch at dawn
Preparing Loon balloons at dawn for launch in New Zealand, 2013
Launch at dawn
Preparing Loon balloons at dawn for launch in New Zealand, 2013
Flying high in New Zealand
A balloon aloft in New Zealand, 2013
Flying high in New Zealand
A balloon aloft in New Zealand, 2013
Flying high in New Zealand
A balloon aloft in New Zealand, 2013
Testing in Brazil
Using Loon balloons to connect a classroom in Brazil, 2014
Testing in Brazil
Using Loon balloons to connect a classroom in Brazil, 2014
Testing in Brazil
Using Loon balloons to connect a classroom in Brazil, 2014
Balloon-to-balloon communication
Testing free space optical communications in the lab. This technology became the
basis for Project Taara, 2014
Balloon-to-balloon communication
Testing free space optical communications in the lab. This technology became the
basis for Project Taara, 2014
Balloon-to-balloon communication
Testing free space optical communications in the lab. This technology became the
basis for Project Taara, 2014
Disaster response in Peru
The Loon team working to bring ground stations back online to connect balloons
after flooding in Peru, 2017
Disaster response in Peru
The Loon team working to bring ground stations back online to connect balloons
after flooding in Peru, 2017
Disaster response in Peru
The Loon team working to bring ground stations back online to connect balloons
after flooding in Peru, 2017
Puerto Rico launch site
Loon begins providing emergency connectivity services to Puerto Rico in the
aftermath of Hurricane Maria, 2017
Puerto Rico launch site
Loon begins providing emergency connectivity services to Puerto Rico in the
aftermath of Hurricane Maria, 2017
Puerto Rico launch site
Loon begins providing emergency connectivity services to Puerto Rico in the
aftermath of Hurricane Maria, 2017
Looking at Loons in Kenya
Loon delivers internet-by-balloon to customers in Kenya, July 2020
Looking at Loons in Kenya
Loon delivers internet-by-balloon to customers in Kenya, July 2020
Looking at Loons in Kenya
Loon delivers internet-by-balloon to customers in Kenya, July 2020
Loon equipment
The Loon equipment used to deliver connectivity in Kenya, 2020
Loon equipment
The Loon equipment used to deliver connectivity in Kenya, 2020
Loon equipment
The Loon equipment used to deliver connectivity in Kenya, 2020

In 2017, when flooding in Peru and a major hurricane in Puerto Rico knocked out
critical ground infrastructure, the Loon team navigated balloons to the disaster
regions and provided emergency connectivity to hundreds of thousands of people.
In 2018 Loon became an independent business within Alphabet and in 2020 the team
co-founded the HAPS Alliance which aims to accelerate innovation and
connectivity efforts in the stratosphere. In 2020, Loon launched the world’s
first internet-via-balloon service with partners to people in unserved regions
of Kenya.

Design
Design


BUILDING A BALLOON THAT LASTS

The Loon team had a lofty goal: designing a balloon that could last for hundreds
of days in the harsh conditions of the stratosphere, where winds can reach 100
km/hour and temperatures can drop to -90 degrees Celsius — all while delivering
constant connectivity. The team spent years refining their designs, and
eventually set a record with a balloon that flew more than 300 days before it
came down to Earth.

Balloon inspection
The Loon team inspect a balloon in the lab in Mountain View, CA
Loon inspection lab in Mountain view, CA
A recovered balloon is being prepared for analysis on a custom flatbed scanner
in the Loon Forensics Lab.
Post-flight analysis with "sharkies"
The team wore "sharkies" to protect the balloon from additional damage during
post-flight analysis.
Identifying tiny holes in the balloon
A specialized polarizing filter was used to identify tiny holes in the balloon.
Information from these inspections helped the team build longer-lasting
balloons.
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Balloon inspection
The Loon team inspect a balloon in the lab in Mountain View, CA
Balloon inspection
The Loon team inspect a balloon in the lab in Mountain View, CA
Balloon inspection
The Loon team inspect a balloon in the lab in Mountain View, CA
Loon inspection lab in Mountain view, CA
A recovered balloon is being prepared for analysis on a custom flatbed scanner
in the Loon Forensics Lab.
Loon inspection lab in Mountain view, CA
A recovered balloon is being prepared for analysis on a custom flatbed scanner
in the Loon Forensics Lab.
Loon inspection lab in Mountain view, CA
A recovered balloon is being prepared for analysis on a custom flatbed scanner
in the Loon Forensics Lab.
Post-flight analysis with "sharkies"
The team wore "sharkies" to protect the balloon from additional damage during
post-flight analysis.
Post-flight analysis with "sharkies"
The team wore "sharkies" to protect the balloon from additional damage during
post-flight analysis.
Post-flight analysis with "sharkies"
The team wore "sharkies" to protect the balloon from additional damage during
post-flight analysis.
Identifying tiny holes in the balloon
A specialized polarizing filter was used to identify tiny holes in the balloon.
Information from these inspections helped the team build longer-lasting
balloons.
Identifying tiny holes in the balloon
A specialized polarizing filter was used to identify tiny holes in the balloon.
Information from these inspections helped the team build longer-lasting
balloons.
Identifying tiny holes in the balloon
A specialized polarizing filter was used to identify tiny holes in the balloon.
Information from these inspections helped the team build longer-lasting
balloons.


LAUNCHING THE BALLOONS

While prototyping and refining their balloons, the team were also focused on
another big challenge: how to get them up in the air reliably, safely and
quickly? To achieve this the team designed and custom-built autolaunchers that
they affectionately called Chicken Little and Big Bird. These large cranes were
capable of filling and launching a balloon every 30 minutes into the
stratosphere — high above airplanes, birds, and the weather.

The Loon team's custom-built autolauncher


SAILING THE STRATOSPHERE

Wind patterns in the stratosphere are layered, with prevailing winds at one
altitude varying in speed and direction from those at slightly different
altitudes. One of the original insights from the Loon team was to take advantage
of this variability to “sail” the winds, rather than to fly against them. By
designing a balloon capable of ascending or descending to catch a favorable
wind, the Loon team could sail through the stratosphere with no propulsion,
reaching locations around the world.

To identify helpful wind patterns, Loon used advanced predictive models to
create interactive maps of the skies. These maps allowed the team to determine
the wind speed and direction at specific altitudes, times, and locations. The
team then developed smart algorithms to help determine the most effective flight
paths through the varying wind layers. With the aid of these algorithms, the
balloons could accurately sail the winds over thousands of kilometers to reach a
desired location and remain clustered around those destinations in order to
deliver consistent connectivity below.





THE LOON BALLOON: DELIVERING CONNECTIVITY FROM THE STRATOSPHERE

ROUGH CONDITIONS
While in the stratosphere, balloons encountered 150°C temperature swings, with
temperatures reaching as low as -90°C
SCALE
Each tennis-court-sized, polyethylene balloon was built to survive for hundreds
of days in the stratosphere’s harsh conditions
ALTITUDE CONTROL
Changing the airflow into a smaller inner balloon called the ballonet would
cause a balloon to change altitude and — by catching a different wind current —
its direction as well



EXPANDING INTERNET COVERAGE: THE LOON COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

SOLAR PANELS
Solar panels powered the communications equipment during the day and charged
onboard batteries for nighttime operation
FLIGHT AVIONICS
The avionics system contained the technical brains that controlled and commanded
the balloon
PARACHUTE
An onboard parachute allowed for a controlled descent and safe landing
COMMUNICATIONS PAYLOAD
Transceivers and antennas relayed a high-speed internet signal across the
balloon network and to people below
Today
Today


SHARING LOON’S LESSONS WITH THE WORLD

Despite Loon’s extraordinary technical progress, the path to commercial
viability proved much longer and riskier than hoped, so in 2021 Loon’s journey
came to an end. To help further stratospheric research and innovation the team
published The Loon Collection — a catalog of Loon’s technical, operational, and
scientific insights. The collection includes flight data from all 2,100 of
Loon’s flights, including sensor data and electrical measurements, for
scientific and climate research.

Some of Loon’s technology, like the high-bandwidth optical communication links
first used to beam a connection between balloons bopping in the stratosphere,
lives on in Project Taara. To support ongoing innovation in the High Altitude
Platform Station (HAPS) communications industry, Loon transferred a number of
stratospheric ballooning and networking patents to partners working in similar
fields. Loon also made a non-assertion pledge for the free use of more than 200
other patents related to launching, navigating, fleet management and more.

Just as Loon’s technology is built on the pioneering work of others, we hope
that these resources will support future exploration in the skies and keep
stratospheric research and innovation aloft.


Explore the Loon Collection

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