Since the successful launch and deployment of two prototype satellites in October 2023, Project Kuiper has been conducting extensive testing of its end-to-end communications payload and network. In November, we confirmed we had validated all priority systems and subsystems within 30 days of launch, and we shared a first look at demos over the Kuiper network. One critical system that was part of that testing—but has remained confidential until now—was our optical inter-satellite link (OISL) capabilities.
Our prototype satellites, KuiperSat-1 and KuiperSat-2, include advanced optical communications payloads. We have completed multiple successful demonstrations of that next-generation technology, maintaining 100 gigabits per second (Gbps) links over a distance of nearly 621 miles (1,000 kilometers) for the entire test window. These tests validated the final component of Project Kuiper’s advanced communications architecture, and the results ensure that OISLs will be operational on our first production satellites, slated for launch in the first half of 2024.
“With optical inter-satellite links across our satellite constellation, Project Kuiper will effectively operate as a mesh network in space,” said Rajeev Badyal, Project Kuiper's vice president of technology. “This system is designed fully in-house to optimize for speed, cost, and reliability, and the entire architecture has worked flawlessly from the very start. These immediate results are only possible because we approached our OISL architecture as one part of a fully integrated system design, and it’s a testament to this team’s willingness to invent on behalf of customers. We’re excited to be able to support these next-generation OISL capabilities on every Kuiper satellite from day one.”