Amazon’s initiative to provide fast, affordable broadband to communities around the world.

The Atlas V 501 rocket will deliver its payload into low-Earth orbit (LEO) as part of the Project Kuiper Protoflight mission. The prototypes of the final Kuiper satellite design will allow Amazon to test its technology in space before beginning full-scale production launches next year.

The Protoflight launch is also the first mission in a partnership between ULA and Amazon to help deploy Project Kuiper’s LEO satellite constellation.

Amazon will use nine launches of the Atlas V rocket and 38 launches of the upcoming Vulcan Centaur to deploy its satellites.

Atlas V: The workhorse of United Launch Alliance's rocket fleet, combining Russian and American technology. It utilizes the Russian RD-180 engine for its first stage and is one of the most versatile rockets in the world, with 20 possible configurations—though only 10 have flown.

Specs

Height: 58.3 m (191 ft) with payload fairing, 52.4 m (172 ft) with Starliner

Diameter: 3.81 m (12.5 ft)

Mass: 590,000 kg (1,300,000 lb)

Stages: 2 (3 with Star 48 upper stage

Developed in the mid-to-late 1990s, the Atlas V is the fifth and final major version of the veteran Atlas rocket, which first flew in 1957. Lockheed Martin designed and built the Atlas V as part of the U.S. government’s 1994 initiative to create the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program for national security missions.

In 2006, the two companies with rockets in the EELV program—Lockheed Martin’s Atlas V and Boeing’s Delta IV—merged to form United Launch Alliance (ULA), establishing an effective monopoly on the U.S. market. For many years, the U.S. government paid ULA over $800 million annually, not for rockets or launches, but to maintain their facilities to be ready for EELV missions.

As a result, the pricing of the Atlas V has varied considerably over time. A basic Atlas V 401 (with no boosters and a single-engine second stage) cost between the high-$90 million range and $163 million USD in the 2000s and early 2010s. Since SpaceX began directly competing with ULA in the 2010s, significant price and cost-per-launch reductions have occurred. The Atlas V 501 variant costs a minimum of $120 million USD.

While it is not the cheapest rocket on the market, the Atlas V's safety and success record is unparalleled, boasting a 100% mission success rating.

For this mission, the Atlas V 501 variant will be used, featuring a 5-meter fairing, 0 solid rocket boosters (SRBs), and 1 Centaur upper-stage engine.

Image courtesy of ULA

Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41) is a significant launch site located at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) in Florida. Originally built in the 1960s, SLC-41 was designed to support the Titan III and Titan IV rocket programs. Throughout its history, the pad has been used for various missions, including the deployment of military and reconnaissance satellites. A notable launch from SLC-41 was the Cassini spacecraft mission, which began its journey to Saturn in 1997.

In the early 2000s, SLC-41 was repurposed to support the Atlas V rocket, operated by United Launch Alliance (ULA). This transition involved extensive upgrades to the pad’s infrastructure and the installation of new ground support equipment to accommodate the Atlas V. These modifications ensured that SLC-41 could meet the requirements of modern space missions.

Under ULA’s management, SLC-41 has hosted a range of important launches, including the Mars Science Laboratory mission, which successfully landed the Curiosity rover on Mars in August 2012, and the launch of GPS III satellites, enhancing global positioning capabilities. The pad has also supported Boeing's CST-100 Starliner capsule, which is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The Starliner capsule, designed to transport astronauts to and from the International Space Station, has been launched from SLC-41 to support crewed missions.

Looking to the future, SLC-41 is set to support ULA’s Vulcan Centaur rocket. The Vulcan Centaur is intended to replace the Atlas V and Delta IV rockets, marking a new era in ULA’s launch capabilities with enhanced performance and cost-efficiency. The pad’s infrastructure will be further updated to accommodate this next-generation rocket.

Photo courtesy of ULA.