Amazon Set To Launch First Operational Satellites For Project Kuiper Network (geekwire.com) 34
Amazon and United Launch Alliance will launch 27 full-scale satellites on April 9 as part of Amazon's Project Kuiper, marking the company's first major step toward building a global satellite internet network to rival SpaceX's Starlink. GeekWire reports: ULA said the three-hour window for the Atlas V rocket's liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41 in Florida is scheduled to open at noon ET (9 a.m. PT) that day. ULA is planning a live stream of launch coverage via its website starting about 20 minutes ahead of liftoff. Amazon said next week's mission -- known as Kuiper-1 or KA-1 (for Kuiper Atlas 1) -- will put 27 Kuiper satellites into orbit at an altitude of 280 miles (450 kilometers).
ULA launched two prototype Kuiper satellites into orbit for testing in October 2023, but KA-1 will mark Amazon's first full-scale launch of a batch of operational satellites designed to bring high-speed internet access to millions of people around the world. [...] According to Amazon, the Kuiper satellite design has gone through significant upgrades since the prototypes were launched in 2023. Amazon's primary manufacturing facility is in Kirkland, Wash., with some of the components produced at Project Kuiper's headquarters in nearby Redmond.
The mission profile for KA-1 calls for deploying the satellites safely in orbit and establishing ground-to-space contact. The satellites would then use their electric propulsion systems to settle into their assigned orbits at an altitude of 392 miles (630 kilometers), under the management of Project Kuiper's mission operations team in Redmond. Under the current terms of its license from the Federal Communications Commission, Amazon is due to launch 3,232 Kuiper satellites by 2029, with half of those satellites going into orbit by mid-2026.
ULA launched two prototype Kuiper satellites into orbit for testing in October 2023, but KA-1 will mark Amazon's first full-scale launch of a batch of operational satellites designed to bring high-speed internet access to millions of people around the world. [...] According to Amazon, the Kuiper satellite design has gone through significant upgrades since the prototypes were launched in 2023. Amazon's primary manufacturing facility is in Kirkland, Wash., with some of the components produced at Project Kuiper's headquarters in nearby Redmond.
The mission profile for KA-1 calls for deploying the satellites safely in orbit and establishing ground-to-space contact. The satellites would then use their electric propulsion systems to settle into their assigned orbits at an altitude of 392 miles (630 kilometers), under the management of Project Kuiper's mission operations team in Redmond. Under the current terms of its license from the Federal Communications Commission, Amazon is due to launch 3,232 Kuiper satellites by 2029, with half of those satellites going into orbit by mid-2026.
Does the math add up? (Score:5, Interesting)
Amazon is due to launch 3,232 Kuiper satellites by 2029, with half of those satellites going into orbit by mid-2026.
That gives them something like 500 days to launch 1600 satellites. If they launch in batches of 27 satellites, that's 60 launches -- one every 8.33 days. Who launches at that pace, or even has a credible path to get to that pace quickly?
Last year, there were a bit over 250 launches to orbit across the entire world. More than half were Falcon 9 (another 4 were Starship). All Chinese launches together added up to 68. We are currently on pace for about 270 launches in 2025, but it seems unlikely that Amazon will book almost a quarter of that capacity -- and so they don't seem likely to hit their 2026 target for satellites on orbit.
Re:Does the math add up? (Score:4, Interesting)
They've got contracts with several launch providers - after some shareholders threatening to sue them for not using the most cost-effective provider, they even ended up contracting a few SpaceX launces. But yes, other than SpaceX, the rockets they're launching on are all just reaching the operational stage, and so a long way from reaching full launch cadence. So it seems unlikely that they will meet those deadlines. I imaging the play is to launch as many as they can and then lobby for an extension, on the basis that they've proved they're making good progress.
Re: Does the math add up? (Score:3)
SpaceX is launching roughly once every 4 days at the moment. Amazon though is not using their rockets though, or in fact, any currently reusable rockets. Iâ(TM)d bet that Amazon will be lucky to get 5 stacks of Kuipers in orbit by the end of the year. Blue origin do of course have New Glenn reuse in the pipeline, but I expect itâ(TM)ll take another few launches before they can nail it reliably, and then itâ(TM)ll be another couple of years before they have a fleet of them that can launch w
Re: (Score:3)
Amazon is due to launch 3,232 Kuiper satellites by 2029, with half of those satellites going into orbit by mid-2026.
That gives them something like 500 days to launch 1600 satellites. If they launch in batches of 27 satellites, that's 60 launches -- one every 8.33 days. Who launches at that pace, or even has a credible path to get to that pace quickly?
No one. This is total marketing B.S. There is no way that Bezos & Co. can ever launch satellites at that rate. The FCC license gives Amazon the legal ability to put that many satellites in orbit, but it doesn't give it the capacity to do so. I hope that I'm wrong, but "news" stories rehashing corporate blog posts about the future should be treated with a healthy dose of skepticism.
Re: (Score:2)
If New Glenn actually gets flying at a decent rate it could potentially get many more satellites up at the same time than Atlas V and maybe get the necessary number of satellites by the deadline, but my guess is that they will just ask for an extension, and based on the already big number of satellites already in orbit (hopefully), they will get it.
Good (Score:2, Insightful)
Can we get on with it?
I'd love to have it, because I live rurally and it would be a useful tool to independence from a basically-monopolostic telecoms provider in my country.
Like I'd love to have Starlink, but I refuse to have anything to do with the guy in charge of it, to the point that it has perpetually tainted that brand and earned itself a place in my permanent blacklist.
And Kuiper have been "launching soon" for about 3 years now. I'm not claiming it's run by an angel either, but at least he's not op
Re: (Score:2)
If you dislike Musk, do you really want to be supporting Bezos instead?
Re: Good (Score:5, Informative)
I mean, Bezos hasnâ(TM)t been doing Nazi salutes, destroying important parts of our government, and fucking up the system that gives wellbeing to people in their old age, or disability. Donâ(TM)t get me wrong - I donâ(TM)t have any illusions that Bezos is a wonder, in fact, heâ(TM)s probably just smart enough to stay in the shadows while Musk destroys himself, but Musk has shown his hand.
Re: (Score:2)
True, although Bezos has turned the WSJ into his personal propaganda outlet.
Re: Good (Score:5, Interesting)
All douches need at least one satellite network, one rocket company, and one social/traditional media propaganda outlet.
Re: (Score:2)
To answer these, the people need a non-profit co-op at-cost delivery model for each (maybe not rockets, just yet). We also need a Youtube replacement funded with some sort of sensible/stable subscription micropayments.
Ideally, we should systematically unhook ourselves from megacorps' technofeudalism to be replaced by worker-/customer-owned co-ops (social ventures that don't optimize for profits to the exclusion of all other concerns) that focus on long-term stability, usab
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How did Jeff Bezos do that? I could see that argument regarding the Washington Post, but not the WSJ.
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He explicitly said: Like I'd love to have Starlink, but I refuse to have anything to do with the guy in charge of it
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Competition ensures that the behavior of the CEOs is less of an issue.
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What would you like me to do?
Buy only organic, gluten-free, locally-source satellite Internet?
Billionaires are - universally - arseholes. You have to be to become one and a normally-adjusted person literally cannot become one. Because if you gave me a billion dollars, I'd set myself up for life, multiple times over, and my family and spend the rest (i.e. the vast majority of the money) on other people. No ordinary person would ever become a billionaire because they'd not get to that point in the first pl
Re: (Score:2)
Musk is, unfortunately, not dumb. I think he is demented. I hope his saner-sounding brother helps him fix himself.
Alternatively, would it be possible that in four years Musk shows us how he was actually using Trump, and was also taming down Trump's awful plans, and Musk has secretly been a good guy all along ?
Could we forgive him or has he caused to much damage for his motivation to be relevant ?
Re:Good (Score:5, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
He's a dumbass.
Technically, socially, economically.
I wouldn't leave him alone in charge of a rabbit hutch, let alone a billion dollar company.
How many internet satellite providers do we need? (Score:4, Interesting)
Do we REALLY need additional providers for satellite internet? Competition is great, but given the huge capital cost to play in that game and the additional "space clutter" in orbit, does it make sense to have multiple satellite constellations providing essentially the same function? Does it benefit society or is it wasteful hubris?
I don't consume or intend to consume satellite internet so I don't really have a horse in this race.
Best,
Re: How many internet satellite providers do we ne (Score:5, Informative)
Yes we do. The only provider at the moment has demonstrated that theyâ(TM)re willing to pull the plug on you, or even actively provide information to your enemies if they decide they donâ(TM)t like your country. We need several more constellations, and we need them from several countries.
Re:How many internet satellite providers do we nee (Score:5, Insightful)
If the only provider is Elon Musk, then yes we need competition.
The only viable alternative would be for StarLink to be un-bundled, that is Starlink would just operate the satellites and other ISPs would sell service to consumers. Similar to how DSL works in most of Europe.
I'd say the bigger concern with all these mega constellations is the risk of environmental damage and of collisions.
Re: (Score:1)
Interesting. So you would rather see billions (probably more like tens of billions) more dollars spent to duplicate a service just because you don't like the politics of the founder of the existing service.
LOL....knock yourself out.
Re:How many internet satellite providers do we nee (Score:5, Insightful)
So strange to see so many people going back on free market principles in favor of command-style economic development like the soviet union had. Plus the cult of personality that's something soviet leaders could only dream of.
Yes we do need billions invested to duplicate services. That's the only way to get a free market with fair prices dictated by supply and demand, and to ensure continued innovation happens. We all know what happens with stagnant monopolies. Besides that the billions invested will greatly benefit the economy as a whole. It's not like the billions of cash get launched into space never to be seen again. Comments like this one really boggle my mind. Who are you to dictate what people spend their money on?
All that said, I think it very likely that Kessler syndrome shuts down the entire thing including starlink before we're done.
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We call those Natural Monopolies and when they exist basic economics says they should be heavily regulated and/or municipalized and made public goods because it means it makes no sense to have multiple competitors.
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ULA are still going? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
Why do you always bring your mom into the conversation?
Making the orbiting junk-pile bigger? (Score:2)
What happens... (Score:2)
So if a company goes belly up is there some legal mechanism in place to take over control of these massive satellite clusters?
Re: (Score:2)
Yes, it's called "bankruptcy" and most countries have laws describing exactly what happens.
Brightness (Score:2)