The highly secretive Google X research lab has unveiled an ambitious plan to provide internet access to the 4.7 billion people who currently can’t access the web via a ring of huge balloons circling the globe.

(Reuters) – Google Inc has launched a small network of balloons over the Southern Hemisphere in an experiment it hopes could bring reliable Internet access to the world’s most remote regions, the company said late Friday. The pilot program, Project Loon, took off this month from New Zealand’s South Island, using solar-powered, high-altitude balloons that ride the wind about 12.5 miles – twice as high as airplanes – above the ground, Google said.

Google has launched a small network of balloons over the Southern Hemisphere in an experiment it hopes could bring reliable Internet access to the world’s most remote regions, the company said late Friday. The pilot program, Project Loon, took off this month from New Zealand’s South Island, using solar-powered, high-altitude balloons that ride the wind about 12.5 miles (20 kilometers) – twice as high as airplanes – above the ground, Google said