One of Google’s Project Loon balloons has crashed to Earth from a height of 11 miles in rural Mexico.
Project Loon, technically a subsidiary of Google’s parent company Alphabet, uses balloons to provide internet access in rural areas. One fell the ground in the municipality of Jonacatepec, in the central Mexican state of Morelos.
Video Credit: CEN/@lineacalientemorelos
The balloon had been flying in the stratosphere but it is not known why it fell to Earth.
According to Fernando Huerta, owner of the land where the balloon was found, the device was found around 11 am and Google confirmed its presence in the area at 3 pm.
Local authorities arrived on the scene and the federal police were then called and the area was cordoned off.
Images show the complex device on the ground with police patrol cars in the background.
The federal police reportedly found instructions for the device which showed it was from Google’s Project Loon.
Google employees eventually arrived at the scene to take the balloon away, according to reports.
Nobody was injured in the incident.
Project Loon uses the high-altitude balloons in the stratosphere at an altitude of around 18 kilometres (11 miles) to create an aerial wireless network for use in rural and remote areas.
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Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
