The satellites in Amazon’s new internet-beaming megaconstellation in low Earth orbit (LEO) are vibrant sufficient to disrupt astronomical analysis, a research has discovered.
The research — which was posted on the net repository Arxiv on Jan. 12 however has not but been peer-reviewed — analyzed almost 2,000 observations of Amazon Leo satellites. It concluded that the spacecraft exceed the brightness restrict advisable by the Worldwide Astronomical Union (IAU) that goals to make sure innocent coexistence of satellite tv for pc megaconstellation with astronomical analysis.
“Shiny satellites are notably troublesome for large-scale astronomical surveys being carried out at ground-based observatories such because the Vera C. Rubin Observatory,” research lead writer Anthony Mallama, an astronomer on the IAU Middle for Safety of the Darkish And Quiet Sky, advised House.com in an electronic mail. “Nevertheless, they will additionally intrude with orbiting observatories just like the Hubble House Telescope.”
Mallama and his colleagues have beforehand studied the brightness of different satellite tv for pc networks, particularly SpaceX‘s Starlink, which, with round 9,500 satellites, is by far the most important constellation in orbit at the moment. Additionally they noticed the large BlueBird satellite tv for pc arrays operated by AST SpaceMobile, whose antennas, which cowl 690 sq. ft (64 sq. meters), make them the brightest synthetic objects within the evening sky. (And the next-gen BlueBirds are even greater, with antennas protecting almost 2,400 sq. ft, or 223 sq. m).
Mallama famous that satellites within the Amazon Leo constellation (which was often called Mission Kuiper) are considerably dimmer than the BlueBirds and barely fainter than most Starlink satellites, which orbit at a decrease altitude of round 300 miles (480 km). Mallama, nevertheless, added that the Starlink constellation advantages from being in Earth’s shadow for many of its orbital time, which makes it much less obtrusive.
Future Amazon Leo satellites are anticipated to orbit at decrease altitudes of round 366 miles (590 km), which is able to additional improve their brightness.
John Barentine, an astronomer on the Silverado Hills Observatory in Tucson, Arizona, and a darkish sky skilled who didn’t take part within the new research, stated that the Amazon Leo satellites seem particularly vibrant throughout twilight.
Amazon started launching its web constellation in 2025. To this point, solely 180 satellites have been positioned into orbit, however Amazon plans to develop the constellation to greater than 3,200 spacecraft.
Mallama, nevertheless, lauded Amazon for its willingness to interact with astronomers and work on lowering the impression of its satellites on the evening skies.
“Satellite tv for pc operators akin to Amazon and SpaceX are working with the astronomical neighborhood to scale back the brightness of their satellites,” Mallama stated. “One technique is by making the underside of the spacecraft mirror-like in order that daylight is mirrored into house reasonably than scattering to the bottom. One other is to orient the satellites’ parts in order that observers on the bottom don’t see the sunlit sides.”
Barentine added that, because the launch of Amazon’s first check satellites in 2023, the corporate’s engineers have managed to scale back the quantity of sunshine the orbiting satellites replicate to Earth and subsequently their visibility within the evening sky.
“Amazon Leo is an occasion wherein the operator established a dialogue with astronomers early within the design section of their constellation,” stated Barentine. “It’s encouraging to see that this effort has yielded some success.”
Astronomers started sounding alarm bells in regards to the impression of satellite tv for pc megaconstellations on the observations of the universe shortly after the launch of the primary batch of SpaceX’s Starlink satellites in 2019. Again then, they revealed streaked photos, affected by the paths left behind by satellites passing within the view of telescopes. However since then, SpaceX too has labored on lowering the brightness of its satellites.
Nonetheless, an earlier report — revealed by Mallama and his colleagues within the journal Month-to-month Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society in November 2025 — discovered that, apart from OneWeb satellites, which orbit at increased altitudes of 745 miles (1,200 km), all at the moment operational internet-beaming constellations, together with the Chinese language initiatives Qianfan and Guowang, have been exceeding the IAU-recommended brightness limits.
