Cloud-Enabled High-Altitude Platform Systems: Challenges and Opportunities

Augmenting ground-level communications with flying networks, such as the high-altitude platform system (HAPS), is among major innovative initiatives of next generation wireless systems (6G). Given HAPS quasi-static positioning at stratosphere, HAPS-to-ground and HAPS-to-air connectivity frameworks are expected to be prolific in terms data acquisition computing, especially given mild weather quasi-constant wind speed characteristics stratospheric layer. This paper explores opportunities stemming from realization cloud-enabled context telecommunications applications services. The first advocates for potential physical advantages deploying data-centers, also known super-macro base stations. then describes various cloud services that can offered merits achieved by this integration, enhancing quality, speed, range proposed span a wide fields, including satellites, Internet Things (IoT), ad hoc networks (such sensor; vehicular; aerial networks), gaming, social networks. For each service, illustrates methods would used providers offload service enable customers consume service. further sheds light on challenges need addressed realizing practical HAPS, mainly, those related high energy, processing power, quality (QoS), security considerations. Finally, discusses some open issues topic, namely, mobility message routing, via blockchain machine learning, artificial intelligence-based resource allocation integration vertical heterogeneous