Project Kuiper Satellite Dispenser Delivered to Amazon
Project Kuiper Satellite Dispenser Delivered to Amazon
Contract Awarded to Beyond Gravity in 2022
In 2022, Beyond Gravity was awarded a contract to develop and deliver the dispenser system for Amazon's upcoming satellite constellation. Project Kuiper, which plans to put 3,236 satellites into Low Earth Orbit, aims to provide affordable, high-speed broadband connections to unserved and underserved communities. At the end of April, Beyond Gravity handed over the first dispenser tier module to Amazon, with the flight of the first product planned for summer 2024.
"With the first delivery, we mark a significant milestone in our cooperation with our customer Amazon."
Paul Horstink, Beyond Gravity
Beyond Gravity was also awarded the contract for the delivery of 38 shipsets to U.S. rocket builder United Launch Alliance (ULA) for its Vulcan rockets that will take Amazon’s Kuiper constellation into space. While the production of the shipsets – comprising the three composite structures payload fairing, heat shield and interstage adapter – at the Beyond Gravity site in Decatur, Alabama, USA, is in progress, the first dispenser tier module developed and built in Linköping, Sweden was handed over to Amazon. This is a significant milestone in the long-term collaboration between Beyond Gravity and Amazon and another important step in strengthening the company's position in the fast-growing commercial space markets. The first dispenser system from Beyond Gravity will be used for the first time on a flight planned this summer.
"Our team in Sweden has been working towards this day for years. With the first delivery, we mark a significant milestone in our cooperation with our customer Amazon and prove once again that we are the technological leader in our industry, an important partner for the new space market and that our 100% mission success track record qualifies us as a reliable partner also for large satellite constellations. I would like to sincerely thank the team for their efforts in the last couple of years as well as Amazon for their trust. I am confident that we can contribute to the success of Project Kuiper’s satellite constellation and the goal of increasing access to broadband worldwide with one of the best dispenser solutions the world has ever seen”, says Paul Horstink, Executive Vice President Beyond Gravity Launchers.
Engineers from Beyond Gravity and Project Kuiper have worked together to develop a modular, scalable dispenser system suitable for a variety of rockets and payload configurations. The Beyond Gravity dispenser system uses ultra-lightweight materials to reduce mass, thereby enabling Amazon to maximize the number of satellites they can launch on each rocket. This supports Amazon's goal of lowering production and deployment costs for its entire satellite system. In Linköping, Sweden, where the dispenser systems for Project Kuiper are produced, Beyond Gravity broke ground in 2022 on a new dispenser production facility, including smart and automated manufacturing tools and meet our customer needs. The new facility, which is expected to be completed by Summer 2024, will more than double Beyond Gravity's dispenser production capacity for satellite dispensers.