<html><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:HelveticaNeue, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif;font-size:13px"><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr"><a href="http://www.wired.com/2015/09/balloon-spy-probe-deep-sweep/" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26729">http://www.wired.com/2015/09/balloon-spy-probe-deep-sweep/</a><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr">I was thinking about something like this, about 25 years ago. But rather than a free-flying balloon, I felt that an aerostat configuration would be better. Further, I figured that a bidirectional optical fiber link would be useful, such as: <a href="http://datainterfaces.com/sfp-modules-single-strand-bidirectional-gigabit-SC.aspx?gclid=CjwKEAjw-IOwBRD1wrTC27fSjFISJABUDZ17VgezJOQe9_0o3_9WJIWBYvqkpJyge7-5g3ZkgT4wZBoC1vzw_wcB" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26828">http://datainterfaces.com/sfp-modules-single-strand-bidirectional-gigabit-SC.aspx?gclid=CjwKEAjw-IOwBRD1wrTC27fSjFISJABUDZ17VgezJOQe9_0o3_9WJIWBYvqkpJyge7-5g3ZkgT4wZBoC1vzw_wcB</a></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr">An otherwise-unjacketed optical fiber, but with a woven Kevlar strength covering, would be useful. </div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr">Obviously, the FAA wouldn't approve, but that doesn't keep us from imagining, huh? </div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641" dir="ltr"> Jim Bell. </div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1442906946184_26641"><br></div></div></body></html>