{"id":17249,"date":"2023-11-09T21:04:30","date_gmt":"2023-11-09T13:04:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/amazon-says-project-kuiper-satellites-are-maneuvering-the-way-they-were-built-to-do\/"},"modified":"2023-11-09T21:04:30","modified_gmt":"2023-11-09T13:04:30","slug":"amazon-says-project-kuiper-satellites-are-maneuvering-the-way-they-were-built-to-do","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/amazon-says-project-kuiper-satellites-are-maneuvering-the-way-they-were-built-to-do\/","title":{"rendered":"Amazon says Project Kuiper satellites are maneuvering the way they were built to do"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full-width\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"630\" height=\"355\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/231109-thruster-630x355.jpg\" alt=\"Amazon's Project Kuiper Hall-effect thruster during testing\" class=\"wp-image-798070\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/231109-thruster-630x355.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/231109-thruster-1260x709.jpg 1260w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/231109-thruster-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/231109-thruster.jpg 1320w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" class=\"wp-element-caption\">Amazon\u2019s Hall-effect thruster fires up with a krypton glow during testing. (Amazon Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A month after the launch of its first prototype Project Kuiper satellites, Amazon reports that the spacecraft have demonstrated controlled maneuvering in orbit using their custom-built electric propulsion systems.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA recent series of test firings provided critical on-orbit data to further validate our satellite design, with each test returning nominal results consistent with our design requirements,\u201d Amazon said today in an online status report.<\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s report suggests that Amazon\u2019s Project Kuiper team \u2014 which is headquartered in Redmond, Wash. \u2014 is on track in its multibillion-dollar effort to create a 3,236-satellite constellation that would eventually provide broadband internet access for millions of people around the globe.<\/p>\n<p>The two prototypes, known as KuiperSat 1 and 2, were sent into orbit atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on Oct. 6. They\u2019re designed to test the hardware as well as the software, ground-based facilities and procedures that will be used for the full constellation. Amazon says that the first operational satellites are due to be launched early next year, and that beta service to selected enterprise customers could begin by the end of 2024.<\/p>\n<p>At least half of the 3,236 satellites will have to be placed in orbit by mid-2026 to satisfy the requirements of Amazon\u2019s license from the Federal Communications Commission. Mass production is due to begin by the end of the year at Amazon\u2019s factory in Kirkland, Wash., at a rate that Amazon says will eventually ramp up to as many as four satellites per day. So, it\u2019s in Amazon\u2019s interest to make sure the design is fine-tuned as soon as possible.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Project Kuiper Protoflight Mission: Launch Day Highlights\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/4CScMjPE744?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<\/figure>\n<p>A key part of the design involves the propulsion system, which is used to maneuver the satellites in orbit and send them down safely to burn up in the atmosphere at the end of their operating life. The Kuiper satellites depend on Hall-effect thrusters that make use of solar-generated electric power and krypton propellant. Those ion thrusters were developed in-house by Amazon\u2019s Kuiper team in Redmond.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSpace safety and sustainability have been fundamental to Project Kuiper since Day One, and our propulsion system is one of the first systems we built and tested in the lab,\u201d said Rajeev Badyal, Project Kuiper\u2019s vice president of technology. \u201cOur custom thrusters are a prime example of Kuiper innovation, and using them to maneuver safely in space was a critical piece of our Protoflight mission. The positive results give us even more confidence in our plans to deploy and operate our satellite constellation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Amazon said the test results reinforce the company\u2019s view that all satellites flying above 400 kilometers (249 miles) should include effective maneuvering capabilities, and that satellite operators should share information about spacecraft maneuvers to make operations in low Earth orbit safer and more predictable.<\/p>\n<p>Project Kuiper is far behind SpaceX\u2019s Starlink broadband satellite network, which already has more than 2 million subscribers. SpaceX manufactures Starlink satellites at its facility in Redmond, not far from Project Kuiper\u2019s HQ. Those satellites are equipped with Hall-effect thrusters \u2014 but for its \u201cV2 Mini\u201d satellites, SpaceX switched the propellant of choice from krypton to argon, which is significantly less expensive.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Amazon\u2019s Hall-effect thruster fires up with a krypton glow during testing. (Amazon Photo) A month after the launch of its first prototype Project Kuiper satellites, Amazon reports that the spacecraft have demonstrated controlled maneuvering in orbit using their custom-built electric propulsion systems. \u201cA recent series of test firings provided critical on-orbit data to further validate [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[275,1775,962,20,4336,442],"class_list":["post-17249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-amazon","tag-electric-propulsion","tag-project-kuiper","tag-satellite","tag-satellite-broadband","tag-satellites"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17249"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17249"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17249\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17249"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17249"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17249"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}