Gives Rural Residents Ability To Send Texts, Get Limited Internet Access

In the wake of Hurricane Maria, the island of Puerto Rico was left with virtually no internet service as much of the island's infrastructure was completely destroyed by the storm.

But connectivity has been at least partially restored on the island thanks to two Project Loon balloons keeping station in the skies above.

USA Today reports that the two balloons are currently providing limited 4G LTE coverage to Puerto Rico, allowing AT&T customers to send and receive texts and emails, as well as providing some Internet access. Project Loon said that there are several more balloons en route to Puerto Rico, and the company has received authorization to deploy as many as 30 of the balloons in the region. Each balloon can provide service for an area of about 1,900 square miles.

In a blog post, Project Loon leader Alastair Westgarth said that this is the first time the balloons have been deployed from scratch at such a rapid pace. "We’re grateful for the support of AT&T and the many other partners and organizations that have made this possible. Thanks to the Pan-American and Puerto Rican government's aviation authorities and air traffic controllers, who enabled us to send small teams of balloons from our launch site in Nevada to Puerto Rico. Thanks also to SES Networks and Liberty Cablevision who helped quickly set up essential ground infrastructure so that the balloons could get internet connectivity," Westgarth wrote.

Westgarth said that Project Loon plans to offer the emergency connectivity "where it’s needed for as long as it is useful and we’re able to do so. Project Loon is still an experimental technology and we’re not quite sure how well it will work, but we hope it helps get people the information and communication they need to get through this unimaginably difficult time."

(Image from X Company blog post. A Loon balloon getting ready to take flight to Puerto Rico from its launch site in Nevada)

FMI: Blog Post, USA Today