Amazon’s Kuiper Satellite Launch Delayed by Bad Weather

Photo : AFP

A rocket that was supposed to carry Amazon’s new space internet machines could not fly on Wednesday because of bad sky and strong winds. This has delayed Amazon’s big plan called Project Kuiper, which wants to give internet to places where there is no good connection, like small villages, war places, or places hit by big storms.

Stay informed with the latest news. Follow DXB News Network on WhatsApp Channel  

The rocket was standing ready to fly from Cape Canaveral in Florida at 7:00 in the evening. But the sky had thick clouds and blowing wind, which made it risky. Experts said these clouds could cause lightning if the rocket flew. So, the rocket team stopped the flight for safety.

The rocket had 27 small machines, called satellites, made by Amazon. These will go up very high above Earth and float around the planet. Amazon wants to send more than 3,200 of these in the sky. They will work together to give internet to people in faraway or broken places.

Amazon said this new service will start later this year. They have not told the cost yet but said it will be cheap, like many other Amazon things.

This plan will make Amazon compete with Starlink, which is owned by Elon Musk. Starlink already has more than 6,700 satellites and many people use it. It has helped in places like Morocco after a big shaking (earthquake), and also in Ukraine during fighting.

Old internet uses a few machines far away in the sky, but Amazon and Starlink use many smaller ones that are closer to Earth. This makes internet work faster in places where cable wires can’t reach. But because these small sky machines don’t cover a big area, many of them are needed.

Amazon has plans to send more of these machines up in the sky. They will use rockets from many different space companies, even from Elon Musk’s own rocket company.

Some people worry that too many machines flying above us could crash into each other. Others worry we won’t see stars clearly. Some also think big private people, like Musk and Bezos, having control over space could be a problem.

Even though this rocket couldn’t fly because of the bad sky, Amazon is still ready to keep working on this big plan to bring fast internet from space to everyone.