On its Fifth Try, SpaceX Manages Launch of Competitor Amazon's Satellites

janrinok writes:

https://phys.org/news/2025-08-spacex-competitor-amazon-satellites.html

SpaceX was not one of Amazon's original choices to fly its Project Kuiper broadband internet satellites, but Elon Musk's company just knocked out its second launch in less than a month for the company that seeks to compete with SpaceX's Starlink.

After four days of missed launch opportunities, SpaceX was back Monday for a successful fifth try, as a Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Space Launch Complex 40 at 8:35 a.m. Eastern time on the KA-02 mission, carrying 24 more satellites for Amazon's growing constellation.

The launch came after weather scrubs on Saturday at the launch site and Sunday at the booster recovery site. A pair of Thursday and Friday attempts were also called off as SpaceX took time to perform additional vehicle checks.

The first-stage booster for the mission made its first flight and will attempt a recovery landing downrange on the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas stationed in the Atlantic.

The launch comes less than four weeks since SpaceX flew the first of three contracted flights for Amazon.

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