In an effort to provide Internet from space and compete with Elon Musk’s Starlink service, Amazon launched two satellites on Friday. The satellites lifted off from Cape Canaveral in Florida at 2 p.m.:
06:00 local time (6:00
18:00 GMT).
According to a report published by AFP, industrial corporation United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, launched two satellites.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos said Project Kuiper will deliver fast, affordable broadband to unserved and underserved communities around the world through a constellation of more than 3,200 satellite in low Earth orbit (LEO).

“We have conducted extensive testing at our lab and have a high level of confidence in our satellite design, but no What is the substitute for on-orbit testing? »
The company announced it would invest $10 billion in the project and has booked 77 heavy rocket launches with commercial providers Arianespace, ULA and Bezos-owned Blue Origin. According to Amazon’s report, the first operational satellites of the Kuiper project are expected to be launched in early 2024, and the hope is to have the first tests with customers by the end of next year.

Friday’s test attempted to establish contact between the probe and Earth, deployed their solar panels and confirmed that all equipment was working properly and in place, AFP reported. desired temperature.

These services are designed to provide Internet access to even the most remote and inaccessible areas of the world, including war zones or areas affected by natural disasters.

This comes after Elon Musk’s SpaceX launched the first batch of more than 3,700 operational Starlink satellites in 2019 and is by far the company’s largest.
Musk’s ownership of Starlink caused an uproar in Ukraine last month when it emerged he had refused to activate service for a planned attack by Kiev forces on Russia’s Black Sea naval fleet ‘last year.