Our Technology
Loon is pioneering the commercial application of cutting-edge, stratospheric technologies. Together, these innovations are adding a new layer to the global connectivity ecosystem, making it possible to connect billions of people and things in places no one thought possible. After years of development, these technologies are in production at scale around the world.
Delivering Connectivity From the Stratosphere
Flight Systems
A Loon flight system consists of three main components: 1) The balloon keeps the system aloft; 2) the ‘bus’ contains all the hardware required for navigation and safe operations; and 3) the payload that’s mounted on the bus is essentially a floating cell tower, housing all the communications equipment required to connect users below.
Network Orchestration
Linked together with wireless signals that can travel hundreds of kilometers, multiple Loon flight systems work together to provide sustained coverage over extremely large areas. With up to 30 flight systems connected to one another, Loon creates webs of connectivity that can cover remote areas without additional terrestrial infrastructure.
Fleet Automation
Loon’s entire network can function autonomously. It efficiently routes data traffic across flight systems and ground stations while accounting for the constant motion of the flight system, weather events, and other potential obstructions.
Ground and Cloud
Using wireless links, our stratospheric flight systems connect to the internet through ground stations. A network of flight systems then delivers connectivity to people and places that could be thousands of kilometers away from the ground stations.
Unlocking the Power of the Stratosphere
The Opportunity
Loon operates in the stratosphere, which is about 20 kilometers above the Earth’s surface and twice as high as where commercial aircraft operate. High enough to allow for large coverage footprints, yet low enough to accommodate low latency, high speed data transmission, the stratosphere represents a sweet spot for connectivity platforms. In the past, the challenges of operating in the stratosphere deterred commercial activity. Our technologies have overcome these challenges, making stratospheric communications a reality.
Advantages of Delivering Connectivity from the Stratosphere:
The Challenge
The stratosphere can be a harsh, ever-changing place. Taking advantage of this seemingly inhospitable environment requires overcoming two key challenges:
Keep the platform in the stratosphere for hundreds of days
Get the system to stay over the people who need internet
These challenges require mastering pressure conditions, wind currents, the thermal environment, gravity waves, and solar radiation. As a consequence, the stratosphere has been largely underutilized.
The Loon Solution
Loon has overcome many of the challenges associated with utilizing the stratosphere. Today, our flight systems are operating in production and at scale around the world, achieving key operational milestones.
1M+
flight hours since 2013
40M
KM navigated
350K
flight hours since 2019
HAPS Alliance: Partnering with Industry Luminaries
Loon is a founding member of HAPS Alliance (HAPS stands for ‘High Altitude Platform Station’). HAPS Alliance is working to advance commercial activity in the stratosphere, and to connect more people, places, and things around the globe. HAPS Alliance consists of some of the world’s largest technology, aerospace, and telecommunications companies.
HAPS ALLIANCE
LOON
HAPS MOBILE
AIRBUS
AIRTEL
T-MOBILE
CHINA TELECOM
TELEFONICA
INTELSAT
NOKIA
SOFTBANK
AEROVIRONMENT
ERICSSON