Balloons could bring internet to Brazilian rainforest

Space institute to float internet-transmitting balloons over remote Amazon regions to help rural communities get onlineIt is one thing to say the internet can broaden people's horizons – but a Brazilian project is literally aiming for the skies, putting isolated communities online using balloons that transmit internet signals.The Conectar (Portuguese for "connect") project, which is being overseen by Brazil's National Institute for Space Research (INPE), is not the first to launch balloons in an effort to bring internet-transmitting stations to hard-to-reach locations such as rainforests.In June 2013, Google ran a pilot test for a similar venture known as the Loon project. Some in the development community say the project is misguided as it fails to address poor people's most urgent needs.But Jose Ângelo Neri, an INPE researcher, says his organisation's project and the Google scheme should not be compared as they are different technologies and independent proposals."The balloon will work as a transmission tower," he says. "Being at an altitude above conventional towers – 300 metres from the ground – it will reach a large area through wireless connections."While Google's project uses balloons floating freely 20km above the Earth, each one covering a small area, Conectar balloons will be anchored at strategic points.The new system will be especially useful in rural locations that are not covered by fibre-optic cable networks, says Neri. Regions such as the Amazon, north-...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Tags: theguardian.com Amazon rainforest World news Brazil Broadband Technology Internet Google Global development Environment Science Source Type: news