loon – BIG

A new project is utilizing the bones of Alphabet’s abandoned Loon project.

The project had plans to provide internet access through a series of balloons. Now, Aalyria is using most of the pieces and combining them with lasers and the cloud to provide remote locations with internet access.

According to The Verge, Aalyria focuses on two things. The first is ‘tightbeam,’ a system that utilizes beams of light to communicate data between stations. The second is ‘spacetime,’ software previously utilized through Loon. The platform will use the cloud to examine when a tightbeam station sends a connection to a moving object.

CNBC reports that while Alphabet holds a small stake in the company, it won’t be under Google’s umbrella of companies.

“We are able to orchestrate cross-constellation inter-satellite links that enable the internetworking of government and commercial constellation providers,” Chris Taylor, Aalyria’s CEO, said in a press release.

“We can orchestrate high-speed urban meshes and global unified network operations, and we can help connect the next three billion people.”

Image credit: Aalyria/ Twitter

Source: Aalyria Via: The Verge, CNBC

If you’re asking, “What the heck is a red-throated loon?” you’re probably not alone. This smaller, paler diving bird is a cousin of the Canadian-famous common loon. But the red-throated loon is far less known, and definitely less photographed. One reason? Red-throats breed in the north. The only time a cottager is likely to spot one is when the birds journey south in the fall, stopping along the way at large water bodies including the Great Lakes.

Like other loons, the red-throated loon is a strong swimmer but terrible at walking on land. This is because its legs are positioned far back on its body. No matter—fish-eating loons were designed to dive for their dinner. Or, in the red-throat’s case fly, then dive. They often locate prey while flying—sometimes in flocks. Then, they drop rapidly into the water when they spot a school of fish. Red-throated loons have thin, dagger-like bills (all the better for spearing a meal).

Red-throated loons are more masterful fliers than their common cousins. At least, they’re better at getting airborne. Other loons need a long runway of water to “patter” along before they can take off; red-throats can spring into the sky. This means that they can use small tundra and taiga lakes, or even ponds, for nesting.

Just like the common loon, a red-throated loon loses its red eyes and breeding colours—a rust-coloured neck patch—in the winter. Their generic greyness makes nonbreeding common loons and nonbreeding red-throated loons tricky to tell apart during the cold season. Look closely: a common loon still has a mostly-dark face and neck, with only a blaze of white down the front. A red-throat has more white on its face and neck, with a more black-and-white speckled back. The latter is smaller, with a sinewy neck, a slighter build, and pointier wings.

Cottage Q&A: Why are these loons gathering in groups?