ULA launches 27 satellites for Amazon Project Kuiper on an Atlas V rocket on June 23. Photo: ULA

Amazon and United Launch Alliance are ramping up the campaign to deploy Project Kuiper satellites, launching the second full-scale mission early Monday morning with 27 satellites. 

ULA launched the Kuiper 2 mission on an Atlas V rocket that took off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 6:54 a.m. EDT on June 23. The satellites were deployed to Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) at 450 km. 

Amazon confirmed post-launch it has taken over command of the satellites, which will now go through health checks and then orbit-raising to 630 km above Earth. 

With this mission, 54 Kuiper satellites have been launched. Project Kuiper is Amazon’s planned satellite broadband constellation in LEO designed to provide internet areas with little to no broadband access, a competitor to SpaceX’s Starlink constellation and Eutelsat OneWeb. 

The full constellation is planned to have 3,232-satellites, and Amazon has more than 80 launches booked to deploy the constellation with ULA, Arianespace, Blue Origin, and SpaceX. ULA has six remaining Kuiper missions on the Atlas V rocket and 38 planned Kuiper launches with the Vulcan rocket.

ULA said that at 34,000 pounds, the 27 Kuiper satellites are the heaviest payload ever carried by the Atlas V rocket. 

The launch took place eight weeks after the first mission on April 28. Monday’s mission was previously set for mid-June and delayed due to a measurement on the booster. 

“We are proud to continue our strong partnership with Amazon and empower their mission to bridge the digital divide through reliable satellite technology,” said Gary Wentz, ULA vice president of Government and Commercial Programs. “ULA, working as a catalyst to global connectivity in collaboration with Amazon, enables delivery of these critical satellites designed to drive innovation and connect the world.”