BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – Amazon has selected NASA’s Kennedy Space Center for construction of a $120 million processing facility for its upcoming network of space-based internet satellites known as Kuiper, according to News 6 partner Florida Today.
The Launch and Landing Facility, managed by the state’s aerospace finance and development authority Space Florida, will host the 100,000-square-foot processing plant located near the runway where space shuttles used to land. It will include a 100-foot high bay for integrating the Kuiper internet satellites in the payload fairings of United Launch Alliance and Blue Origin rockets before liftoff from nearby pads at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. In total, it’s expected to stand just over 120 feet in height.
Amazon expects the total investment, including equipment, to run to $120 million and bring 50 new jobs to the Space Coast. Space Florida previously referred to this in public documents and meetings as “Project Comet.”
“We are proud to continue our investment in Florida and to join the historic Space Coast community as we invest in people and facilities to support Project Kuiper,” Brian Huseman, vice president of public policy and community engagement at Amazon, said in a release.
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The Kuiper internet satellites themselves will be built in Kirkland, Washington, before transport to KSC. The new facility will then receive the shipments, prepare the satellites, and connect them to customized dispensers that will deploy them in orbit. From there, they’ll be encapsulated in the protective fairings of ULA’s Vulcan and Blue’s New Glenn rockets.
Amazon has so far secured 83 launches across ULA, Blue Origin, and European launcher Arianespace to deploy its constellation. Manufacturing of the satellites is slated to begin before the end of this year.
Amazon is joining the equivalent of a space-based internet gold rush. SpaceX has so far launched roughly 5,000 of its Starlink internet satellites to low-Earth orbit, while OneWeb operates about 650. SpaceX targets all ranges of customers from residential to RVs to government, while OneWeb is more of an enterprise and maritime internet option.
That means Amazon’s goal of eventually launching some 3,200 satellites directly competes with SpaceX’s Starlink network. The company plans on offering three different kinds of customer terminals that will be used to receive space-based broadband. Pricing has not yet been announced, but SpaceX currently charges $120 a month for new customers.
“Since the early days of rocket launches and payload processing, decades of infrastructure and capital investment has been made, transforming Florida into a global center for the aerospace economy,” said Frank DiBello, president and CEO of Space Florida. “We couldn’t be more thrilled that Project Kuiper chose Space Florida’s Launch and Landing Facility for this facility, and we look forward to being a part of their mission of global connectivity.”
The satellite processing facility builds on Amazon’s $25 billion investment in Florida since 2010. Founder Jeff Bezos’ spaceflight company Blue Origin, which is preparing to launch its New Glenn rocket no earlier than late 2023, has also spend billions on investments at Launch Complex 36, a rocket factory just outside KSC, and general infrastructure upgrades.
Contact Emre Kelly at aekelly@floridatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @EmreKelly.
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