Amazon to Launch First 27 Project Kuiper Broadband Satellites

Online shopping giant Amazon has confirmed that they will attempt to launch their first batch of 27 ultrafast broadband satellites into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) for Project Kuiper on Wednesday next week (9th April 2025) – mission “KA-01“. But it will take a further 79 launches before the new global mega constellation is fully completed.

The company currently has approval to deploy and operate their own constellation of 3,236 LEO satellites as part of Project Kuiper. The spacecraft, each of which can process data traffic at speeds of up to 1Tbps (Terabits per second) – shared between many users, will sit at an altitude of between 590km and 630km.

The latency (often c.20-40ms) and speed of the new broadband service is expected to be similar to that of Starlink (SpaceX). Project Kuiper’s smallest ultra-compact (7-inch square) ground terminals are, for example, expected to support download speeds of “up to” 100Mbps (Megabits per second), while their slightly larger standard model (11 inches square) delivers up to 400Mbps, and the largest model (19 inches) should be able to deliver up to 1Gbps (Gigabit per second). The latter is more for government and enterprise users etc.

However, performance isn’t solely dictated by the satellites themselves, which means that Amazon will still need a strong global network of Ground Stations and supportive regulators in the USA, UK and many other countries in order to deliver an effective service (Ofcom has already granted approval).

The mission, named “KA-01” for Kuiper Atlas 1, will launch on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida (USA). The launch itself is currently scheduled to take place between 12 and 3pm EDT (16:00-19:00 UTC) on 9th April. But as we all know, rocket launches often suffer delays and so the time/date could still shift.

The satellites flying on KA-01 are said to be a “significant upgrade” from the two prototype satellites that Amazon tested in 2023. The company has improved the performance of every system and sub-system on board, including phased array antennas, processors, solar arrays, propulsion systems, and optical inter-satellite links. In addition, the satellites are coated in a dielectric mirror film unique to Kuiper that scatters reflected sunlight to help make them less visible to ground-based astronomers.

Once launched, the next few years will then be spent launching the rest of the constellation via a mix of ULA rockets, as well as 30-plus launches that are being planned across their other launch providers: Arianespace, Blue Origin, and SpaceX. Blue Origin is another one of Jeff Bezos’ companies.

The first commercial beta service is expected to follow toward around the end of 2025 and it will take 6 years to fully launch their entire constellation (taking us to around 2030). The new network should hopefully provide some much-needed competition for SpaceX’s Starlink network, although the extremely high cost of creating such networks will limit Amazon’s ability to offer a significantly cheaper or more flexible service.

As with other LEO constellations, the satellites are only designed to stay in orbit for a few years before they’re dragged back down to be burnt up (disposed) in the atmosphere.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8XsTzF90sQ