A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is scheduled to lift off tonight from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station with 29 of Amazon's internet satellites, adding another batch to a broadband network that is still taking shape in low Earth orbit. The launch window opens at 8:52 p.m. EDT on April 27 and runs for 29 minutes.
ULA calls the mission Amazon Leo 6, and coverage is set to begin about 20 minutes before launch. If the rocket flies on time, it will be the sixth Atlas V mission ULA has handled for the Amazon Leo constellation, which is expected to grow to more than 3,200 satellites if the program stays on track.
The mission lands at a busy point in the buildout. Nine Amazon Leo liftoffs had already taken place before tonight's launch, using rockets from ULA, SpaceX and Arianespace. Atlas V has carried five of those missions, while SpaceX's Falcon 9 has launched three and Arianespace's Ariane 6 one. More than 80 launches of different rockets will be needed before the constellation is complete.
The Atlas V's first four Amazon Leo flights sent 27 broadband satellites into space. Then Amazon Leo 5 launched on April 4 and raised the total number of satellites launched to 29, while also setting a record for the heaviest payload ever flown by an Atlas V at 18 tons. Tonight's Amazon Leo 6 is expected to match that mark by carrying another 29 satellites.
The timing also keeps the pace brisk. Another Amazon Leo mission is scheduled early on April 28 on an Ariane 6 rocket from French Guiana. Amazon Leo was formerly known as Project Kuiper, and the program is meant to build a direct rival to SpaceX's Starlink internet megaconstellation.
The question tonight is not whether this single launch changes the contest. It is whether Amazon can keep stacking successful launches fast enough to turn a handful of flights into a network with enough satellites to matter.
The Atlas V launch can be watched live through Space.com courtesy of ULA or directly via the company.
