Amazon Kuiper

About Amazon Kuiper

Amazon's Project Kuiper was announced in April 2019 as a $10 billion initiative to build a constellation of 3,236 low Earth orbit broadband satellites. The programme is Amazon's most ambitious infrastructure investment outside its core cloud and logistics businesses, and represents a direct challenge to SpaceX's Starlink — a rare case of two of the world's wealthiest individuals funding competing mega-constellations.

The FCC granted Amazon a licence for the full constellation in July 2020, with a condition that half the satellites be deployed by July 2026. The first two prototype satellites, KuiperSat-1 and KuiperSat-2, launched in October 2023 on a ULA Atlas V rocket and successfully demonstrated the system's optical inter-satellite links and Ka-band customer terminal communications. Amazon confirmed both prototypes exceeded performance targets, achieving download speeds above 100 Mbps to compact customer terminals.

Production satellites began launching in 2025 aboard multiple vehicles. Amazon signed the largest commercial launch procurement in history: 83 launches across ULA Vulcan Centaur, Blue Origin New Glenn, and Arianespace Ariane 6, along with remaining Atlas V missions. The constellation operates across three orbital shells at approximately 590, 610, and 630 km altitude at 30°, 42°, and 51.9° inclination respectively, designed to provide continuous broadband coverage between 56°N and 56°S latitude — where the vast majority of the world's population lives. Amazon plans to offer service through affordable customer terminals manufactured at its own facility in Kirkland, Washington.

RocketMapper currently tracks 210 Amazon Kuiper satellites in real time in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). Use the live map above and the orbital parameters panel here to inspect altitude, inclination, period and velocity. Track them live on the 3D globe →