Facebook reveals plans for solar-powered drones to boost internet access

A Bangladeshi woman brings a laptop to a village to help people access the internet. Currently two thirds of the world cannot access the web. Photograph: A M Ahad/AP

Facebook is working on solar-powered drones to deliver and improveinternet access around the world.

The social network has revealed details of its Connectivity Lab, a team of people, including experts from Nasa, which is working on new aerospace and communications technologies with the aim of expanding global internet access.

The company's founder, Mark Zuckerberg, said in a post on his personal Facebook page: "In our effort to connect the whole world withInternet.org, we've been working on ways to beam internet to people from the sky. Today, we're sharing some details of the work Facebook's Connectivity Lab is doing to build drones, satellites and lasers to deliver the internet to everyone."

In a video post, Yael Maguire of Facebook spoke about the different ways the company was looking to extend the reach of existing internet connections.

"We're looking at a new type of plane architecture that flies at roughly 20,000 metres, because that's a point where winds are at their lowest, it's above commercial airliners, it's even above the weather, and actually it can stay in the air for months at a time. These planes are solar-powered and they sit there and circle around, and have the ability to broadcast internet down."

Zuckerberg said key members of the team were from the UK-based firm Ascenta, which created early versions of Zephyr, the world's longest flying solar-powered unmanned aircraft. They would be working on "connectivity aircraft".

The project is an extension of the Internet.org group which Facebook helped found in 2013 along with other major technology firms, such as Samsung and Nokia, with the goal of providing the internet in those parts of the world without access. According to the group, two thirds of the world cannot access the web.

The launch of the Connectivity Lab follows a similar move by Google with the creation of Google X, a group responsible for the development of both Google Glass and the smart contact lenses announced in January. The lenses can measure glucose levels in the tear ducts, and could be used to monitor conditions such as diabetes.

Facebook offered no details on how far advanced the project was, or any time frame for its completion.