Launch of Amazon's Project Kuiper internet satellites scrubbed due to weather

Amazon's Project Kuiper to launch from Florida

Amazon's Project Kuiper is sending its first full batch of satellites to space, marking an important step in its mission to deliver fast, reliable internet to customers and communities around the world.

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - The planned launch of Amazon's Project Kuiper 1 was scrubbed about 15 minutes before the conclusion of the launch window due to weather concerns. A new launch date and time were not immediately announced.

What is Project Kuiper?

What we know:

Amazon wants to send its first full batch of satellites to space, marking an important step in its mission to deliver fast, reliable internet to customers and communities around the world. The mission is named "KA-01," for Kuiper Atlas 1, and will launch on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket from Florida.

The KA-01 mission will deploy 27 satellites at an altitude of 280 miles (450 kilometers) above Earth.

According to Amazon officials, Project Kuiper will deliver high-speed, low-latency internet to virtually any location on the planet. Amazon officials said they expect to begin delivering service to customers later this year.

Amazon's Project Kuiper to launch from Florida

The first-generation satellite system will include more than 3,200 advanced low-Earth orbit satellites. Amazon has secured more than 80 launches to deploy the initial constellation, with each one adding dozens of satellites to the network. The KA-01 mission is just the first step in that process.

Project Kuiper’s satellite payload will be the heaviest payload ULA’s Atlas V rocket has ever flown. To accommodate it, Amazon officials said ULA will be flying Atlas V in its most powerful configuration. The rocket will include five solid rocket boosters, in addition to its main booster, and a payload fairing (which contains the satellites) that is 77 feet (23.5 meters) high and 16.4 feet (5 meters) wide.

‘Just the start of our journey’

What they're saying:

Amazon officials said the satellites flying on KA-01 are a significant upgrade from the two prototype satellites they successfully tested during the Protoflight mission in October 2023.

"We have 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," Amazon officials said. "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."

Amazon recently announced Project Kuiper’s first full-scale satellite launch. (Credit: Amazon/Fox News)

"We’ve designed some of the most advanced communications satellites ever built, and every launch is an opportunity to add more capacity and coverage to our network," said Rajeev Badyal, vice president of Project Kuiper. "We’ve done extensive testing on the ground to prepare for this first mission, but there are some things you can only learn in flight, and this will be the first time we’ve flown our final satellite design and the first time we’ve deployed so many satellites at once. No matter how the mission unfolds, this is just the start of our journey, and we have all the pieces in place to learn and adapt as we prepare to launch again and again over the coming years."

When will the mission take place?

Timeline:

ULA Launch Director Eric Richards announced that the planned launch for Wednesday evening was scrubbed.

"Weather is observed and forecast NO GO for liftoff within the remaining launch window at Cape Canaveral this evening, according to Launch Weather Officer Brian Belson," read the ULA live updates page. "The stubborn cumulus clouds and persistant winds make liftoff not possible within the available window.

When it happens, the launch will take place from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Brevard County.

United Launch Alliance will send 27 Kuiper satellites into low Earth orbit as Amazon begins a full-scale deployment of our satellite internet network. (Credit: Amazon/Fox News)

How to watch, stream the mission

What you can do:

ULA's "Kuiper 1" mission page will provide updates on the launch, as well as a launch livestream that will begin approximately 20 minutes ahead of liftoff.

FOX 35 will stream the livestream in the player at the top of this story.

ULA released a visibility graphic that shows when the Atlas V rocket will rise into view for spectators across Florida and the Eastern Seaboard.