31/07/2015 - Facebook's first solar-powered drone will begin flight tests by the end of the year. It would be better to call it Super-Drone, considering its wingspan as large as that of a Boeing 737. This is what the next phase of the campaign foresees to provide Internet connectivity even in the most remote parts of the world.
The social network's engineers claim to have built a giant drone with a 140-foot wingspan that weighs less than 1.000 pounds (approximately 453.6 kg). Designed to fly at high altitudes for up to three months, it will use the laser to send internet signals to ground stations. The engineers of the unit called Connectivity Lab they are designing a laser communication system, deemed to be accurate enough and capable of hitting a coin-sized target at a distance of 11 miles.
The project is part of a broader Facebook effort to cover Internet coverage for hundreds of millions of people living in remote regions of the planet using satellites and other high-tech equipment.
Other technology companies have launched similar initiatives. Google is experimenting with high-altitude balloons, drones and satellites. Microsoft has funded a project for transmitting Internet signals over unused television radio waves. Facebook is also working on another initiative using wireless carriers. The goal is to provide a limited mobile Internet service at no cost, in countries where residents are too poor to afford traditional wireless plans.
The Facebook drone was made of carbon fiber. It is able to fly at icy high altitude temperatures for an extended period of time. The drones will be raised in the air by some balloons and released at 90.000 feet, so well above the commercial flights and sheltered from thunderstorms. At night, the drone will drop to 60.000 feet to save the battery.
Each drone will fly in a circle with a radius of about 3 km. In this way the engineers hope to guarantee Internet services in areas with a radius of around 50 kilometers. The drones will guarantee 10 gigabit connections per second.
Finally, Facebook is designing drones to bounce signals from one carrier to another. In this way the signal can reach larger areas on the ground.
Franco Iacch