Tech Where it Matters: How Google's hot air balloons will help Puerto Rico in the aftermath of a disaster.

Around 4 years back, when Google(now Alphabet) announced Project Loon through its innovation Lab X, the idea seemed ridiculous and far fetched. Truly, a project to deploy wireless connection all over the world by placing Hot Air Balloons with Signal reflectors in the high atmosphere does raise eyebrows. 

An Early Prototype of the Loon Balloon

Well, apparently there was solid logic behind that seemingly far fetched plan. Indeed Project Loon turned to be a potent force, when Peru was flooded, and the deployed balloons which restored some connectivity to the country. 

Now that hurricane Maria Hits the coast of Puerto Rico(off the Coast of USA), the island is in shambles and people are still struggling with basic necessities such as Clean Water. What more, only 27% of the network is online, and the communication scene is a disaster in itself. 

To aid the relief process, and to bring back connectivity faster, the FCC has approved the deployment of Project Loon in the region.

"More than two weeks after Hurricane Maria struck, millions of Puerto Ricans are still without access to much-needed communications services,” FCC chairman Ajit Pai said in a statement. “That’s why we need to take innovative approaches to help restore connectivity on the island. Project Loon is one such approach."

While in Peru, Google was already testing the project and hence it was deployed within weeks of the floods, the situation is trickier in Puerto Rico. The hot air balloons are basically floating network towers, and they relay the signal over the region. However, with the majority of the Carriers out of the picture, Google can have a tough time finding a partner.

This is what a Google Spokesman said:

We’re grateful for the support of the FCC and the Puerto Rican authorities as we work hard to see if it’s possible to use Loon balloons to bring emergency connectivity to the island during this time of need. To deliver signal to people’s devices, Loon needs be integrated with a telco partner’s network — the balloons can’t do it alone. We’ve been making solid progress on this next step and would like to thank everyone who’s been lending a hand. 

The FCC licence expires April 2018, so Google has until then to figure out a solution. Once deployed, the balloons can remain in the atmosphere for around 180 days and provide emergency communication and high speed internet to the area of reach.

A Balloon with the deployment unit

While this is one incident, this move puts an important point to the table. The problems of today, tangible or intangible, can be approached with ingenuity and be dealt with. 

It is also refreshing to see the pioneers of the contemporary world to step up and take responsibility in situations like this. On the same note as above, Elon Musk's Tesla is reportedly in talks with the Governor of Puerto Rico to replace the broken energy infrastructure with solar power. If implemented, it could provide Tesla with a solid credential on the power and scalability of their system. In that case, we would be seeing Tesla Grids in lot more places. 

Our prayers go for the people of Puerto Rico, and we hope tech continues to be used where it matters the most.