Amazon announced it will launch the first 27 satellites of its Project Kuiper space internet service next week. The KA-01 mission is scheduled to blast off on April 9 from Cape Canaveral aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, weather permitting.

The company aims to start offering high-speed internet service "later this year" through this new satellite constellation. Project Kuiper will eventually comprise 3,200 satellites launched by various partners including ULA, Arianespace, Blue Origin, and even SpaceX.

Similar to Elon Musk's Starlink, Project Kuiper plans to provide global internet coverage. The service will work with a compact seven-inch dish delivering speeds up to 100Mbps or larger dishes capable of up to 1Gbps. Amazon stated that terminal costs will be under $400.

The satellites will orbit 392 miles above Earth at 17,000 mph, completing a full circuit around the planet approximately every 90 minutes. They feature a dialectic mirror film coating designed to scatter light and reduce visibility to ground-based astronomers.

Amazon's upcoming network will join SpaceX's existing constellation of over 7,000 Starlink satellites. Once completed, the combined fleets will total more than 10,000 satellites in low Earth orbit. Amazon previously launched two test satellites in October 2023, which successfully transmitted data at speeds up to 100 gigabits per second.

The Atlas V rocket will fly in its most powerful configuration for this mission, which represents its heaviest payload to date. The launch vehicle will include:

• Five solid rocket boosters alongside the main booster
• A payload fairing standing 77 feet high and 16.4 feet wide

Project Kuiper vice president Rajeev Badyal acknowledged potential challenges ahead: "We've done extensive testing on the ground to prepare for this first mission, but there are some things you can only learn in flight. No matter how the mission unfolds, this is just the start of our journey."

Competition in the satellite internet market continues to intensify globally. Starlink recently secured partnerships with India's largest telecom providers, Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio, to deliver satellite internet services to remote areas across the country. The agreements still require government approval, with Starlink waiting since 2022 for operating licenses in India.