The first satellites for Amazon’s new space-based internet service are set to take flight Wednesday evening from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Commercial company United Launch Alliance is giving the satellites their boost into orbit on an Atlas V rocket. The mission’s two-hour launch window from Space Launch Complex-41 opens at 7:00 p.m. ET. Forecasters call for a 55% chance of favorable weather for launch.
The rocket’s payload contains 27 satellites, the first batch of more than 3,200 satellites Amazon plans to place in orbit for Project Kuiper, which aims to blanket the globe with internet access. Amazon said there’s a focus on providing high-speed, reliable internet service across the globe, including those in “unserved and underserved communities.”
In October 2023, Amazon successfully launched two prototype satellites into orbit. The company said these new operational satellites launching Wednesday have improved technology, including new solar arrays and upgraded propulsion systems.
Amazon has planned more than 80 launches to place more of these operational satellites into orbit, building the company’s initial network of satellites – known as a constellation. Project Kuiper joins other space-based internet constellations like billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starlink, which has more than 7,000 active satellites in orbit.
These so-called mega-constellations have drawn criticism over concerns they could create additional space debris or interfere with astronomical observations. Both SpaceX and Amazon have worked to mitigate these concerns, including treatments to the satellites that makes them less reflective to ground-based astronomers.
