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ULA launch delayed for Amazon's 2nd batch of 27 'Project Kuiper' satellites

ULA launch delayed for Amazon's 2nd batch of 27 'Project Kuiper' satellites

Yahoo16-06-2025
June 16 (UPI) -- The United Launch Alliance liftoff planned for Monday with dozens of new satellites to join Amazon's "Project Kuiper" mission was delayed due to engineering issues.
The project is part of Amazon's effort to expand global Internet access.
Amazon's second attempted Kuiper 2 launch of 27 additional satellites into low-Earth orbit on top ULA's 205-foot tall Atlas V rocket was delayed shortly before 1 p.m. EDT due to an "engineering observation of an elevated purge temperature within the booster engine," according to ULA officials.
It originally was scheduled to launch during a 30-minute time window starting at 1:25 p.m. EDT from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Space Launch Complex 41. The mission is an effort to boost Amazon's growing satellite constellation to a total of 54 launched out of the mandated 1,600 in about a year's time as part of a federal agreement.
"The team will evaluate the hardware, and we will release a new launch date when available," the Colorado-headquartered ULA added.
A live-stream broadcast started roughly 20 minutes or so on multiple online platforms prior to the temporarily delayed liftoff with initial weather forecasts predicting a 75% chance for favorable conditions.
The ULA rocket designated AV-105 would have been the 103rd launch of its Atlas 5 rocket.
ULA President and CEO Tory Bruno wrote during Monday's countdown in a Bluesky post that United Launch Alliance team members at the the time were "working a temperature measurement (that was) warmer than previous" Atlas 5 rocket launches.
It was set to be ULA's second sendoff on Atlas 5 for Amazon's Project Kuiper after ULA successfully sent a first batch of 27 satellites in early April. That first mission's own initial liftoff was likewise scrubbed, but due to weather.
Amazon officials say it Projectt Kuiper will aim to deliver "fast, reliable Internet to customers and communities around the world" with a goal to launch and install more than 3,200 satellites in space by the end of next year, which was a required timeframe part of its agreement with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, or FCC.
Meanwhile, a new launch date has yet to be announced.
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The budget and tax megalaw signed by Trump earlier this month, for example, slashed tax credits and incentives for wind and solar projects. A forecast from BloombergNEF predicts that new wind, solar and energy storage additions could drop 23 percent through 2030 compared to what would have happened without the law. In all, that would be about 117 fewer gigawatts of new power. The Interior Department has also added new requirements for construction of solar and wind on federal lands, which developers have called a form of sabotage. The AI plan's release also came on the same day that Trump's Department of Energy nixed a conditional federal loan for the Grain Belt Express transmission project. That line, set to be one of the nation's largest new grid projects, would carry renewable energy from the Great Plains to large cities in the East, but had opposition from key Republican lawmakers. 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At the same time, the Trump administration may be in a better position to win many lawsuits, after the Supreme Court ruled in July that NEPA does not require agencies to consider far-reaching environmental impacts of projects, according to Coleman. Another lingering question is how agencies would look to implement categorical exclusions, since the administration has moved to roll back regulations governing the NEPA process. The Department of Energy issued an interim final rule this year rescinding its NEPA regulations and releasing alternative guidance in its place. 'What does a categorical exclusion mean if you aren't allowed to adopt regulations?' Coleman asked. Tanya Das, the director of artificial intelligence and energy technology policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, said her organization supported the categorical exclusions to expedite the NEPA process. Language in the plan aiming to 'enable AI adoption' also could be useful, considering the time it takes to process applications under NEPA and other regulations. Going through data 'at a human pace can be very slow,' she said. AI tools that sift through data could be an option for expediting reviews, she said. Das said she would be watching closely to see how the administration fleshes out language in the action plan on the grid. The White House included broad directives such as 'stabilize the grid of today as much possible' and 'enhance the efficiency and performance of the transmission system,' but did not specify matching agency actions as of yet to implement many of those goals. Some groups that often back deregulatory actions said they were concerned that the plan puts too much focus on tapping the federal government to finance and guide the technology. 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