D.C. Memo: Project Kuiper, Amazon's Answer to Starlink, Blasts Off Tonight
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LEO: Project Kuiper – Amazon’s low Earth orbit satellite rival to Elon Musk’s Starlink – is set to blast off this evening from a Florida launch pad. It will take some time – but not that much – before the Starlink-Project Kuiper global Internet battle will heat up because Project Kuiper requires several hundred operational satellites in the sky before it can launch a competitive service. Today’s scheduled launch is to include a payload of 27 satellites – slightly more than the 22 satellites that Starlink parent SpaceX typically packs into the hold of a Falcon 9 rocket. Project Kuiper begins at a huge disadvantage – Starlink has more than 7,000 LEOs in orbit, serves 125 countries and territories, and has 5 million subscribers globally. “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,” said Project Kuiper Vice President Rajeev Badyal, who expects the current launch schedule will be sufficient to begin Internet service globally later this year. Some put their faith in Project Kuiper before it was even operational. Nevada awarded $14.4 million in BEAD money to Project Kuiper to serve 4,891 state locations. Louisiana has set aside 5% of its BEAD money for alternative technologies, such as fixed wireless and LEO satellite. Along with Starlink, Project Kuiper could receive perhaps billions in BEAD program money if Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick prevents states from funding fiber projects with high per-location costs.
Project Kuiper’s maiden launch will be provided by a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket jointly owned by Boeing and Lockheed Martin. The new launch window is now 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. EDT, and the event will be live streamed on YouTube, starting about 20 minutes before launch. A change in weather conditions can cause delays – a snafu that Starlink has had to cope with in several instances at Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
