Kuiper / Amazon LEO

The Kuiper satellites form Amazon's Amazon LEO (formerly Project Kuiper) 3200 satellite broadband megaconstellation.

Kuiper is Amazon's low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite broadband constellation project consisting of 3236 satellites, intended to provide high-speed, low-latency internet services globally, with a focus on underserved and remote areas. The system is Amazon’s answer to competitors like SpaceX’s Starlink and OneWeb.

The Kuiper satellites are being developed in-house by Amazon, with development and manufacturing centered in Redmond, Washington. Each satellite is designed to carry a phased-array antenna capable of handling gigabit speeds. The system will be complemented by custom-designed user terminals and ground gateway infrastructure. The satellites are intended to operate in three orbital shells: 590 km, 610 km, and 630 km altitude, with phased array antennas and optical inter-satellite links planned in later iterations.

Amazon has signed large multi-launch agreements with multiple providers:

• ULA Atlas-5(551): 9 launches of 27 or 29 satellites each
• ULA Vulcan Centaur VC6L: 38 launches of +40 satellites each
• Arianespace Ariane 64: 2 launches of 32 satellites each
• Arianespace Ariane 64 (Block 2): 16 launches of 36 satellites each
• Blue Origin New Glenn 7x2: 12 launches of 49 satellites each
• SpaceX Falcon-9 v1.2 (Block 5): 13 launches of 24 satellites each

Amazon launched its first two Kuiper prototype satellites, Kuiper P1 and P2, on 6 October 2023 aboard an Atlas-5(501) (Atlas-V(501)) rocket (mission: Protoflight). These prototypes are being used to validate the satellite design and network performance ahead of the operational phase.

Initial deployment of production satellites is expected to begin in 2025, with half the constellation (1,618 satellites) required to be in orbit by July 2026 under FCC regulations.