28-04-2025
Will Tennessee be able to see the Amazon rocket launch out of Florida? What to know
After Blue Origin's highly publicized, star-studded, all-female crew launch earlier in April, another Jeff Bezos-funded launch is expected to happen and this time, Tennesseans will be able to watch as a rocket launches.
It's not an up-close view of a rocket launch, but space enthusiasts in Tennessee could be able to track the path of the latest launch as it streaks off to touch the inky blackness of space. The latest launch from billionaire Jeff Bezos is an unmanned craft meant to launch a system of satellites.
Online, people have been calling this latest launch from Bezos the "Amazon rocket launch" or the "Amazon rocket from Florida".
Here's what's being launched, from where and when Tennesseans can see the rocket.
The Amazon rocket launch is on Monday, April 28, at 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT.
If the weather is bad, the launch could be scrubbed, much like the originally set April 9 launch. There's a two-hour mission window for the launch.
Amazon will have the launch at Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The United Launch Alliance will launch a massive Atlas V rocket, depending on cloud cover out of Florida, it won't just be Floridians (and visitors) that could see it light up the sky after liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Tennesseans in parts of Middle and East Tennessee are expected to be able to catch a glimpse of the rocket launch. But cloud coverage and weather could hinder the view of it.
Here's a look at where the launch could be visible:
People should be able to start seeing it during stage 5 of the launch. Here's where it should be visible at that stage.
5: Launch + 270 seconds, ULA Atlas V rocket launch visibility extends beyond Florida to these other states and cities:
Georgia; Savannah, Georgia; Atlanta, Georgia; Columbus, Georgia
Alabama; Dothan, Alabama; just outside Birmingham, Alabama
Tennessee; Knoxville, Tennessee; just outside Huntsville, Tennessee; just outside Nashville, Tennessee
Kentucky
South Carolina; Spartanburg, South Carolina
North Carolina; High Point, North Carolina; Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Charlotte, North Carolina; Wilmington, North Carolina
Virginia; Virginia Beach, Virginia; Richmond, Virginia
West Virginia; Charleston, West Virginia
Maryland; Washington, Maryland
Delaware; Annapolis, Delaware; Dover, Delaware
The ULA Atlas-5 rocket will launch Bezos' Project Kuiper, a global network of satellites meant to compete with SpaceX CEO-billionaire Elon Musk and his Starlink satellites.
Bezos' Amazon rocket launch will "deploy all of the satellites safely in orbit, which means they can independently maneuver and communicate with our team on the ground," according to an Amazon news release.
"Once the satellites have successfully separated from the rocket, they will begin a series of mostly automated steps to activate onboard systems and use their electric propulsion systems to gradually ascend to their assigned orbit of 392 miles (630 km)," the release said. "The satellites will travel at a speed of more than 17,000 miles per hour (27,359 km per hour) on orbit and circle the planet approximately every 90 minutes."
Florida Today contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: When is the Amazon rocket launch? Why you might see it in Tennessee
