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SpaceX sets rivalry aside and launches Amazon satellites

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches Amazon Project Kuiper satellites
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sends Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellites into space. (SpaceX / Amazon via LinkedIn)

In a case of strange space bedfellows, SpaceX launched 24 satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper constellation — which is competing with SpaceX’s Starlink network to provide internet access from low Earth orbit.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sent the satellites into space from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 2:30 a.m. ET July 16 (11:30 p.m. PT July 15).

This was the third launch of operational satellites for Project Kuiper, coming after two batches of 27 satellites each were delivered to orbit in April and June. Those earlier missions made use of United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rockets, but in order to meet its satellite deployment schedule, Amazon is turning to SpaceX for three Falcon 9 launches.

SpaceX enjoys a significant edge over Amazon when it comes to providing satellite broadband access: Starlink has about 8,000 satellites in orbit and more than 6 million subscribers, while Project Kuiper is just getting off the ground. Project Kuiper’s satellites are built at an Amazon facility in Kirkland, Wash., not far from the SpaceX complex in Redmond where Starlink satellites are manufactured.

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Starfish’s second spacecraft launched for docking test

Illustration: Otter Pup approaching spacecraft in orbit
An artist’s conception shows Otter Pup 2 (at left) approaching its target satellite. (Starfish Space Illustration)

Starfish Space’s second Otter Pup spacecraft went into Earth orbit today, marking the first step in what the Seattle-area startup hopes will be a successful demonstration of the vehicle’s ability to dock with other satellites.

Otter Pup, which is about the size of a microwave oven, was one of 70 payloads that hitched a ride to space aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as part of the Transporter-14 rideshare mission. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 2:25 p.m. PT.

Minutes after stage separation, SpaceX reported that the rocket’s reusable first-stage booster made a successful touchdown on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean. Later, SpaceX confirmed that Otter Pup separated successfully from the Falcon 9’s upper stage.

“Launch is an exciting milestone for Otter Pup 2, placing the satellite into low Earth orbit so it can work towards its mission: docking with another satellite and validating core Starfish technologies along the way,” Starfish Space, which is headquartered in Tukwila, Wash., said in a post-launch posting to X / Twitter. “If successful in these goals, Otter Pup 2 will bring us closer to an interactive future in orbit, shifting the paradigm for what humanity can accomplish as we venture out into the universe.”

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Amazon adds 27 satellites to its broadband constellation

Atlas V rocket liftoff with Amazon Project Kuiper satellites
An Atlas V rocket sends Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellites into space. (United Launch Alliance via YouTube)

A second batch of satellites has been sent into low Earth orbit for Amazon’s Project Kuiper broadband network, marking another significant step toward competing with SpaceX’s global Starlink network.

United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket launched 27 Project Kuiper satellites today at 6:54 a.m. ET (3:54 a.m. PT) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. They joined 27 other satellites that were launched on an Atlas V in April.

“Many more launches ahead, but we’re 2/2 in under two months and already looking ahead to our next missions,” Rajeev Badyal, vice president of technology and head of Project Kuiper at Amazon, said in a LinkedIn posting.

Eventually, Amazon aims to deploy 3,232 satellites to provide global high-speed internet access to millions of people who are currently underserved. Under the terms of Amazon’s license from the Federal Communications Commission, half of those satellites should be deployed by mid-2026 — although that deadline may be extended.

This batch of satellites was originally scheduled for deployment a week ago, but ULA said it had to scrub the first launch attempt “due to an engineering observation of an elevated purge temperature within the booster engine.” No major technical issues cropped up during today’s countdown.

The current schedule calls for Project Kuiper to begin delivering service to customers later this year.

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Xplore shares hyperspectral images from its first satellite

Hyperspectral satellite image of Salt River in Arizona
An image from the XCUBE-1 satellite shows the Salt River in Arizona. ©2025 Xplore Inc. All rights reserved.

Bellevue, Wash.-based Xplore has released the first hyperspectral images from its XCUBE-1 satellite, six months after the shoebox-sized spacecraft was sent into orbit.

The pictures, captured with a resolution of 5 meters (16 feet) per pixel, show a river in Arizona, rugged terrain in Saudi Arabia, farmland in Uzbekistan and a settlement in Inner Mongolia. Each image is color-coded to reflect wavelengths that go beyond what the eye can see.

Such images can be used to assess agricultural crop health, moisture levels and other characteristics of a given terrain. Thermal infrared imagery could be used to track the spectral signatures of seagoing vessels or overland shipments as part of a campaign to crack down on illegal trafficking. For military applications, hyperspectral images could point to newly laid minefields or see through camouflage. And for space applications, Xplore’s multi-sensor imaging system could be turned spaceward to track other satellites.

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Smartphone satellite texting isn’t exactly rocket science

Alan Boyle holds his phone above his head in an Oregon cafe
GeekWire’s Alan Boyle points his iPhone skyward to seek a satellite connection. (Photo Courtesy of Alissa Farley)

NEHALEM, Ore. — When I bought myself a phone that was built for satellite texting, nearly three years ago, I never thought my first opportunity to make a space-based connection would come in a cozy Oregon cafe.

But there I was, standing up and pointing my iPhone toward the sky to find a signal while the rest of my family was eating brunch. It was my first lesson in the nuts and bolts of direct-to-cell satellite phone service — the sort of lesson that some smartphone users might be learning under more dire circumstances.

One of the big selling points for the iPhone 14 that I bought in 2022 was that you could send emergency SOS messages via the Globalstar satellite network if you ran into trouble in a cellular dead zone. GeekWire co-founder John Cook learned his lesson about the emergency alert system when he inadvertently triggered “the worst butt-dial” of his life during a hike through Dinosaur National Monument in 2023.

Since then, telecom network operators have worked to widen subscribers’ access to satellite texting, in recognition of the fact that you don’t need to have an emergency to appreciate being able to communicate from a dead zone.

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Starfish gets set for second satellite docking attempt

Illustration: Otter Pup approaching spacecraft in orbit
An artist’s conception shows Otter Pup 2 (at left) approaching its target satellite. (Starfish Space Illustration)

Two years after its first space mission literally took a turn for the worse, Tukwila, Wash.-based Starfish Space is getting ready for a second test mission aimed at having its Otter Pup spacecraft dock with another satellite in orbit.

Otter Pup 2 is due for launch from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base as early as next month on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, as part of the Transporter-14 rideshare mission.

Starfish Space co-founder Trevor Bennett told me that the Otter Pup 2 demonstration mission will be “a major step, to return to flight and have a spacecraft do a really complex mission, which is to go rendezvous and then ultimately capture an unprepared spacecraft.”

The goals of the mission are similar to the original objectives for the first orbital Otter Pup test in 2023, in which the spacecraft was set to conduct proximity operations and link up with a space tug.

That plan had to be changed when Otter Pup 1 was sent into a difficult-to-control spin during its deployment. After months of maneuvering, Starfish conducted limited testing of its satellite rendezvous system but had to forgo doing an on-orbit docking.

Bennett said Starfish has made upgrades in hardware as well as software for Otter Pup 2. For example, the company is using a different electric propulsion system, provided by ThrustMe. “The major difference is, now we have software and capabilities that could fly on multiple vehicles, not just on Otter Pup,” he said.

Otter Pup, which is about the size of a microwave oven, is designed to demonstrate the technologies that will be used on Starfish’s full-size Otter satellite servicing vehicles. Such vehicles are being built to link up with satellites on a regular basis — to refuel and service them for extended missions, or deorbit them for safe disposal at the end of their missions. Starfish has won tens of millions of dollars in contracts to execute Otter satellite docking missions next year for Intelsat, the U.S. Space Force and NASA.

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Get a sneak peek at Amazon’s satellites flying in orbit

Video frame showing Amazon Project Kuiper satellites being deployed in orbit
A video shows Project Kuiper satellites being deployed in orbit. (Amazon / ULA / Rajeev Badyal via LinkedIn)

Several days after the launch of the first full-scale satellites in Amazon’s Project Kuiper constellation, the mission team is still on an adrenaline high, according to the team’s leader.

“It’s early in the mission and we still have lots of work ahead,” Rajeev Badyal, Amazon’s vice president of technology and head of Project Kuiper, said today in a LinkedIn post. “It’s been an entirely nominal start though, and that’s all thanks to the talent, passion and dedication of the Kuiper team. They’ve delivered in a big way here – for Amazon and for our customers – and I’m so proud.”

Project Kuiper is Amazon’s effort to build a satellite-based broadband network that could eventually serve millions of people around the world. It’s seen as a competitor for SpaceX’s Starlink network, which already has more than 7,000 satellites in low Earth orbit and more than 5 million users.

Following up on a test mission in 2023, Amazon had its first batch of 27 operational Project Kuiper satellites launched into orbit from Florida on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on April 28. Those satellites are now being checked out by the mission operations team in Redmond, Wash. The launch kicked off a campaign that’s expected to take years to execute, leading to the deployment of 3,232 satellites.

Amazon’s satellites are built at a 172,000-square-foot facility in Kirkland, Wash., with additional work being done at Project Kuiper’s Redmond headquarters.

The company hasn’t shared many images of the satellites, apparently for proprietary reasons. Badyal, however, posted a video that provided a rare peek of the satellites being deployed in orbit from the Atlas V rocket’s Centaur upper stage. The video shows the satellites rising from the upper stage in sequence and floating off into space. A thin blue slice of Earth’s disk can be seen at the end of the clip.

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Amazon satellites go into orbit, boosting Starlink rivalry

Atlas V rocket launch with Project Kuiper satellites
United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket sends Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellites into space. (ULA Photo)

A powerful rocket sent the first batch of 27 satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper broadband internet network into low Earth orbit today, marking a milestone in the company’s multibillion-dollar bid to catch up with SpaceX’s Starlink constellation.

Today’s liftoff came nearly three weeks after the first attempt was scrubbed due to weather concerns. This time, the clouds and rain showers stayed far enough away for United Launch Alliance to launch its Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 7:01 p.m. ET (4:01 p.m. PT). ULA used its most powerful version of the Atlas, with five solid-rocket boosters attached to the first stage.

“Go Atlas … Go Centaur … Go KA-01,” launch managers declared in the final seconds before liftoff.

The rocket’s Centaur upper stage delivered Amazon’s satellites to an altitude of 280 miles (450 kilometers). In a posting to Threads, ULA said the satellites were deployed successfully. And in an online update, Amazon said its team “established contact with all 27 satellites, and initial deployment and activation sequences are proceeding nominally.”

The satellites will use their onboard electric propulsion systems to settle into their final intended orbits of 392 miles (630 kilometers) under the management of Project Kuiper’s mission operations team in Redmond, Wash.

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Amazon sets a date for milestone Kuiper satellite launch

Delivery of Amazon Project Kuiper payload to Florida launch facility
United Launch Alliance delivers the Kuiper-1 payload to its Vertical Integration Facility in Florida. (ULA Photo)

Update: The April 9 launch attempt was scrubbed due to weather concerns, but Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellites were sent into orbit on April 28.

Amazon and United Launch Alliance have set April 9 as the date for the first launch of full-scale satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper broadband internet network.

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.

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Amazon Web Services aims to optimize AI in space

Illustration: D-Orbit satellite platform in orbit
Amazon Web Services tested orbital data processing in 2022 on D-Orbit’s ION satellite carrier, shown in this artwork. (D-Orbit Illustration)

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are turning into requirements for space operations, and Amazon Web Services is optimizing its products to reflect that view, according to the former Air Force major general who’s now in charge of AWS’ aerospace initiatives.

“AI, ML, generative AI have become table stakes for our future on-orbit systems and capabilities,” Clint Crosier, director of aerospace and satellite solutions at AWS, said today during Booz Allen Hamilton’s annual Space + AI Summit. “We have reached the limit of human capacity to digest petabytes and petabytes of data in real time and make any sort of intelligent decisions about them. We’ve culminated, so we must further embrace AI, ML and generative AI capabilities for the future.”

Crosier and other speakers at the summit, conducted at the headquarters of the Air & Space Forces Association in Virginia, pointed to the rapidly rising number of satellites in low Earth orbit as a major factor behind the need for more sophisticated AI tools. Over the past decade, that number has risen from about 1,300 to more than 10,000. Keeping track of all those satellites is challenging — and it’s just as challenging to send all that data down to Earth for processing.

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