Trending Now - Blue Origin Launches Initiative for Orbital Data Centers

WHO:

Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

TeraWave, Blue Origin’s broadband constellation

WHAT:

Blue Origin filed plans for "Project Sunrise," a constellation of up to 51,600 satellites.

The satellites will perform high-energy compute on orbit.

The satellites will be in sun-synchronous orbits at altitudes between 500 and 1,800 kilometers.

Each orbital plane will be 5 to 10 kilometers apart in altitude and contain between 300 and 1,000 satellites.

Blue Origin seeks FCC authorization to use Ka-band frequencies primarily for telemetry, tracking, and control applications.

The company aims to deorbit its satellites within five years after the end of their operational lives.

Blue Origin requested a waiver from milestone rules requiring half the constellation to be in orbit six years after approval and the full constellation within nine years.

WHERE:

The proposal was filed with the Federal Communications Commission in Washington, D.C.

WHEN:

The filing with the FCC occurred on March 19th, 2026.

The company announced its plans in January 2026.

WHY:

Blue Origin argues that a satellite constellation is the best approach to meet the growing computing requirements and power demand of artificial intelligence applications.

The company states that solar-powered satellites fundamentally lower the marginal cost of compute capacity compared to terrestrial alternatives.

Blue Origin believes that competition among space-based data center systems will drive innovation and enhance service quality.

HOW:

The satellites will primarily communicate through optical intersatellite links.

Blue Origin plans to comply with guidelines to minimize the creation of orbital debris and work with the astronomy community to reduce the brightness of the satellites.

(UPDATED March 20, 2026 17:18 UTC)

Blue Origin has filed plans with the Federal Communications Commission for "Project Sunrise," which aims to launch a constellation of up to 51,600 satellites designed for high-energy computing in orbit. The satellites will operate in sun-synchronous orbits at altitudes between 500 and 1,800 kilometers, with each orbital plane housing between 300 and 1,000 satellites spaced 5 to 10 kilometers apart. Blue Origin is seeking authorization to use Ka-band frequencies for telemetry and has requested a waiver from certain milestone rules, emphasizing that their solar-powered satellites could significantly lower computing costs and drive innovation in artificial intelligence applications.