American multinational conglomerate, Alphabet and Japanese tech-giant Soft Bank together successfully tested the world’s first LTE (Long Term Evolution) internet connectivity from a solar-powered unmanned aircraft (Sunglider) flying above 62,000 feet.
The connection was good enough to support an international video call, with participants from Japan and America, including Vint Cerf, one of the “fathers of the internet.” The participants could participate in the video call using regular smartphones, as the radio waves transmitted and received by the aircraft operated on the same frequencies as existing smartphones.
The solar-powered unmanned aircraft enabled LTE connectivity for about 15 hours during the test flight, despite demanding conditions in the stratosphere, where wind speed crossed 30 meters per second and temperature was as low as minus 73 degree Celsius.
The test was part of a partnership between Alphabet’s Loon and SoftBank’s HAPSMobile that was first announced in April 2019. Loon, which is best known for its balloon-based cell towers, provided the communications payload, while HAPSMobile built the aircraft.
Sunglider: an enormous autonomous solar-powered drone was designed to stay aloft for months at a time. This huge craft looks like a single massive wing, some 78 meters (255 feet) across; and is powered by 10 propellers with a top speed of 110 km/h (68 mph). While it is pretty slow for an aircraft, the Sunglider (previously called the HAWK30) was designed for endurance rather than speed. It will linger high in the stratosphere above commercial flights, recharging its batteries from the sun and autonomously adjusting to the changing winds.
The test provided insight into how HAPS could be used in disaster management and lifesaving technologies. The companies also plan to use the data collected during the test flight in their working with the regulators and telcos to complete the work on HAPS.
The success of this stratospheric test flight is a major step forward for HAPSMobile as it continues to pursue its mission of bridging the digital divide by building its business in the stratosphere, a new frontier for humankind. HAPSMobile will continue to work to revolutionize mobile networks by leveraging HAPS.
Junichi Miyakawa, HAPSMobile CEO and president, said "HAPS technology is greatly needed by all of us for natural disaster recovery and Internet inclusion. The test flight took the company one step closer to realizing its goal of creating green aircraft that can provide high-speed internet anywhere in the world. We once again moved one step closer to our goal of building a base station that floats in the sky solely on solar energy."
Source - The Verge, The Hindu newspaper
