Atlas V rocket completes on-target orbital delivery for Amazon

Enlarge / United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket climbs away from its launch pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, with Amazon's first two Kuiper satellites. (credit: United Launch Alliance)

ULA confirms a successful launch on the Project Kuiper Protoflight mission.

The first two prototype satellites for Amazon's broadband network launched Friday from Florida, the first in a series of at least 77 rocket launches the retail giant has booked over the next six years to deploy a fleet of more than 3,200 spacecraft to rival SpaceX's Starlink system.

These first two satellites for Amazon's $10 billion Internet megaconstellation, called Project Kuiper, took off on top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 2:06 pm EDT (18:06 UTC).