On April 28, Amazon launched the first batch of 27 Kuiper Internet satellites from Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S.A. These satellites are the first of 3,236 satellites that Amazon plans to send to low Earth orbit for Project Kuiper.
The 27 satellites were carried on an Atlas V rocket built by the United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, from the United Launch Alliance's Cape Canaveral space base at 7:00 p.m. EST. The launch, originally scheduled for April 9, was canceled due to inclement weather and postponed until today.
Under Project Kuiper, Amazon plans to launch (at least) thousands of satellites into space. Once operational and networked, it will compete directly with Musk's space exploration company SpaceX's Starlink.
At 1:31 AM today, China successfully launched the Tianwen-2 planetary exploration probe from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center using the Long March-3B Y110 carrier rocket.
At 2:09 on May 13, China successfully launched the Communication Technology Experiment Satellite No. 19 from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center using a Long March 3B carrier rocket. The satellite smoothly entered its predetermined orbit, and the launch mission was a complete success.
On May 11 at 21:27, China successfully launched the Remote Sensing Satellite No. 40, Group 02, from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center using a Long March 6A carrier rocket. The satellite entered its predetermined orbit smoothly, and the launch mission was a complete success.