Project Loon, Google’s ambitious plan to provide global internet access via high-altitude balloons, is soon to begin its testing phase.
Google has partnered with Australia’s largest telecom company, Telstra, to get this endeavor underway.
Starting in December, Google will launch 20 balloons across Queensland, Australia. These balloons will carry 4G-antennas that can beam down signals as far as 20km below. The balloons are solar-powered and are expected to stay aloft for about one hundred days each.
These balloons have been designed by Google’s experimental research section, Google X.
The company’s ultimate goal is to enable internet access worldwide.