But, police later confirmed it was actually the remains of a specialist balloon used by X, a company founded by Google, to boost the internet signal strength in remote areas. Jorge Esguerra,

the Tolima police commander, said speculation it was a satellite had also been mistaken. He said: "It's a technological device used by Google which moves around and is held aloft

by a balloon." It was part of X's Project Loon, previously known as Google X, which uses the balloons drifting through inner space to improve internet services. During a test

flight of one of the balloons over a tea plantation in Sri Lanka in February 2016, another one was grounded. It is not yet known what caused the latest crash.