Facebook solar-powered drone logs on for testing

Facebook’s Jay Parikh said they’ve built the first full-scale version of Aquila, the internet drone, and it’s now ready for flight testing.

The company said it will test it in the United States later this year.

The Guardian quoted Facebook Engineering Director of Connectivity Yael Maguire as having said that the plane will operate between 60,0000 and 90,000 feet.

And with the drone being field-tested in the coming months, it could soon be in a sky over you.

Facebook has built its own drone that will bring internet connectivity to remote parts of the world, the social network has announced. It is another step in Facebook’s goal of connecting the entire world to the internet.

While the craft’s dimensions – about as light as a auto with a wingspan equivalent to a Boeing 737 – are impressive, ABC News said, what may be the most stunning feature of the new drone is its ability to use a laser beam to transmit at a rate 10 gigabits per second.

It will use lasers to send Internet signals to stations on the ground. Although Facebook is designing the drones and the network as well as solving technical problems, it says it will share its knowledge with partners and hopes to enlist telecommunications companies, aircraft manufacturers and perhaps governments in the construction and operation of the system. Aquila’s launch will mark Facebook’s Connectivity Lab’s continuous efforts to boost Internet access and speed to areas of the world that lack Internet service or good Internet service. During the day, the Aquila will fly up to 90,000 feet to stay above the weather and take full advantage of the sun’s power.

The drones will be tested in the U.S.in the fall of 2015. These drones are programmed to be operated at a height of 18 km and 27 km respectively. Google is experimenting with high-altitude balloons as well as drones and satellites. The drone will be lifted to its preferred path with the help of helium balloons, as it lacks wheels or any other motor to propel itself.

Facebook has also said that it will avoid dealing with customers directly.

He added that these technologies are useful because “10 percent of the world’s population lives in remote locations with no Internet infrastructure”, and it may be costly to deploy conventional systems like cable or cellular communication in these areas.

Facebook will clearly benefit from more Internet users in the long run, but Zuckerberg said that this initiative isn’t driven by profits and that the focus is providing economic and social benefits to developing nations.