The mission, called Kuiper Atlas 1 And that he already suffered a delay in his launch for bad weather, took off at 7:00 p.m. (11:00 p.m. GMT) from the space station of Cabo Cañaveralin the state of Floridasoutheast of USA.
The 27 satellites of this first part of the Iran project coupled to a rocket Atlas V, of the company United Launch Alliance (ULA).
Kuiper projecta subsidiary of Amazonthe online sale giant founded by the billionaire Jeff Bezosit goes with years of delay regarding Starlinkthe extensive network of internet satellites of Spacex that has given Musk A weight on the geopolitical board to supply the Internet in remote areas of the planet.
The project has cost Bezos US $ 10 billion. The company plans to display 3 thousand 200 satellites In the low terrestrial orbit – the space of the space located at 1,900 kilometers of altitude – hoping to enter into operation at the end of this year.
The price has not yet been revealed, but Amazon He has promised that it will be low cost.
“Atlas V is heading to the orbit to take those 27 Satellites Kuiperput them on the way and really start this new era in the Internet connectivity“Said Ula Caleb Weiss.
Nourished constellation
With the launch of Monday, Amazon It formally joins a full and rapid growth field that not only includes Starlink but also other emerging players in the satellite internet race.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nwyv0FPGMC
Spacex launched the first satellite lot Starlink In 2019 and now it has more than 6 thousand 750 Operating units, which serve more than five million customers worldwide, which places it from afar as the dominant company of this sector.
Starlink He also gave Internet access in areas of natural disasters and wars, as in Morocco after an earthquake in 2023 and in the front line in Ukraine After the Russian invasion, in February 2022.
Amazon It plans to accelerate the releases in the coming months and years, with more than 80 reserved flights through United Launch Alliance (A joint company formed by US aeronautics Boeing and Lockheed Martin), The French Arianespace, Blue Originof the own Bezosand Spacex.
Kuiper’s satellites will thus join the increasingly nourished constellation of devices that will operate in the low orbit of Starlinkthe European Oneweb and China Guowang.
The growing agglomeration in this orbital neighborhood has raised concern about congestion, possible collisions and disturbances in astronomical observations.