(Amazon Leo)
Amazon Leo has been racing to challenge Starlink, but last night’s Blue Origin rocket explosion threatens to push back the long-delayed satellite internet service even more.
Amazon had been planning to use Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket for the first time to launch 48 Leo satellites, as soon as next week. But on Thursday, the New Glenn rocket exploded on a launch pad in Florida during a static test fire, creating a massive fireball.
The good news is that Amazon never integrated any Leo satellites into the New Glenn rocket before its sudden demise, the company told PCMag. The satellites remain secure at the company's processing facility at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. No Amazon Leo or Blue Origin employees were injured either.
Still, the incident doesn't bode well for Leo, which is supposed to officially launch sometime this summer. The day before the rocket explosion, Amazon even posted a tweet, mentioning it had planned “24 Leo launches”using the New Glenn.
The company was also preparing to pack 48 or more Leo satellites per New Glenn flight, when the previous launches have been limited to around 30 satellites.
(Amazon)The launches are desperately needed considering Amazon expects to miss a deadline from the Federal Communications Commission to operate half of the 3,200 satellite constellation by this July 30th. The company is urging the FCC to grant an extension, otherwise it risks losing the authority to launch any new satellites for the first-gen constellation.
In January, Amazon also told the FCC it projected to have 700 operational satellites in space by July 30th. But so far, the Leo system currently spans 300 satellites, according to data from astronomer Jonathan McDowell. Amazon likely needs hundreds of more satellites to ensure robust coverage when Leo remains in a private beta with only select enterprise customers. For perspective, SpaceX’s Starlink began serving its first US customers in late 2020 using about 800 orbiting satellites.
Although Blue Origin is intent on “rebuilding” to resume the New Glenn flights, the process could take several months, if not longer, for a rocket with shaky record as investigators try to pinpoint the exact cause of the explosion.
However, Amazon told PCMag it can still source flights from existing launch partners, such as SpaceX, United Launch Alliance, and Arianespace, giving it a way to keep sending up Leo satellite into orbit. One of those launches is actually occurring tonight using a ULA Atlas V rocket at Space Launch Complex-41 based at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida. (The Blue Origin New Glenn exploded at Launch Complex 36 about ten miles away.)
Amazon also noted it's secured more than 100 launches for Leo, with New Glenn only making up less than 25% of the total. In the coming weeks, the company is preparing two more launches using another Atlas V and a rocket from Arianespace. While New Glenn is off the table, Amazon expects it can turn to ULA’s heavy-lift Vulcan Centaur as an alternative for launching larger payloads.
The New Glenn explosion is also expected to affect AST SpaceMobile, a rival to SpaceX’s satellite-to-phone service Starlink Mobile. Like Amazon, AST has been trying to use New Glenn to launch its own satellites. But in April, an earlier New Glenn flight botched deploying an AST satellite at the correct orbit, resulting in its demise.
Despite the setback, AST executives said in an earnings call this month it would continue sourcing some launches from Blue Origin’s New Glenn, along with SpaceX, to help it operate a total of 45 satellites by year’s end. That goal looks especially doubtful now.
AST didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with information from Amazon.