Satellite-Internet Race Heats Up As Amazon Secures 83 Rocket Launches
Satellite-Internet Race Heats Up As Amazon Secures 83 Rocket Launches
Amazon's Project Kuiper plans to take on Elon Musk's Starlink
satellite internet service. Kuiper aims to provide high-speed, low-latency
broadband to customers in rural places. Like Starlink, Amazon will have
affordable customer terminals and a ground-based communications network.
"Project
Kuiper will provide fast, affordable broadband to tens of millions of customers
in unserved and underserved communities around the world," said Dave Limp,
Senior Vice President for Amazon Devices & Services.
No timetable was given when Arianespace, Blue Origin, and United
Launch Alliance would begin launching the LEO constellation of 3,236
satellites. However, Amazon is preparing to begin testing a pair of Kuiper
prototype satellites in the second half of this year. According to FCC documents,
Kuiper is expected to have half of its satellites in LEO by 2026.
- Arianespace: 18 launches of
Europe's Ariane 6 rocket
- Blue Origin: 12 launches via
the New Glenn rocket, with options for 15 additional launches
- United Launch Alliance: 38 launches via
the Vulcan rocket
"We
still have lots of work ahead, but the team has continued to hit milestone
after milestone across every aspect of our satellite system. These launch
agreements reflect our incredible commitment and belief in Project Kuiper, and
we're proud to be working with such an impressive lineup of partners to deliver
on our mission," Limp said.
Kuiper will compete against Musk's Starlink internet
service. Starlink already has more than 1,900 satellites in LEO and
250,000 subscribers. The next-generation satellite internet has already
provided unprecedented speeds for people in rural areas and even in warzones.
Here's a map of where Starlink is available in the US.
Internet from space appears to be the future, and so far, Starlink is the only provider for consumers, but Amazon's Kuiper is not far behind.
https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/satellite-internet-race-heats-amazon-secures-83-rocket-launches
Comments
Post a Comment