Amazon-ULA Atlas V rocket launch in Florida after Father's Day: What time is liftoff?
A rocket launch from Florida could potentially blast off on Monday, June 16, and be visible outside of the Sunshine State.
United Launch Alliance will launch the second batch of Amazon satellites into space — and it's possible people can see the Atlas V rocket far outside of Florida.
When ULA launches its massive rocket, depending on cloud cover, Floridians (and visitors) as far as Jacksonville, Cape Coral and Miami could see it light up the sky after liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Visibility from most of Florida is possible, according to ULA.
What's on board ULA Atlas V? Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' Project Kuiper, a global network of satellites, to compete with SpaceX founder-billionaire Elon Musk and Starlink satellites.
This will be the second launch of the Amazon Project Kuiper production satellites, courtesy of the ULA Atlas V rocket. Online, the mission has been called the "Amazon rocket launch" or "the Amazon rocket launch from Florida." Technically, it's an "Amazon-ULA rocket launch" or "Amazon satellite launch." Bezos also founded the private space company Blue Origin, which launches rockets at a facility in Texas and in Cape Canaveral.
In Florida, we can best see the "Amazon satellite launch" in person, particularly if you're anywhere on the Space Coast (Melbourne, Florida, area), the Fun Coast (Daytona Beach area) or the Treasure Coast (Vero Beach, Jensen Beach and Fort Pierce).
Below is more information about the rocket launch in Florida and suggestions on where to watch them from here.
For questions or comments, email FLORIDA TODAY Space Reporter Rick Neale at [email protected] or Space Reporter Brooke Edwards at [email protected]. For more space news from the USA TODAY Network, visit floridatoday.com/space.
When is the next rocket launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida? ULA Project Kuiper 2
- Mission: United Launch Alliance will launch an Atlas V rocket carrying Amazon's second batch of broadband satellites for its Project Kuiper constellation. Amazon's Project Kuiper is Jeff Bezos' attempt to compete with SpaceX founder Elon Musk's Starlink satellite mission.
- Launch window: 1:25 p.m. ET Monday, June 16, 2025
- Launch location: Launch complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida
- Sonic booms: No
- Trajectory: Northeast − it's possible the ULA Atlas V rocket will be visible outside of Florida after liftoff, from Cape Canaveral to New Jersey.
- Live coverage starts two hours minutes before liftoff at floridatoday.com/space: You can watch live rocket launch coverage from USA TODAY Network’s Space Team, which consists of FLORIDA TODAY space reporters Rick Neale and Brooke Edwards and visuals journalists Craig Bailey, Malcolm Denemark and Tim Shortt. Our Space Team will provide up-to-the-minute updates in a mobile-friendly live blog, complete with a countdown clock, at floridatoday.com/space, starting 90 minutes before liftoff. You can download the free FLORIDA TODAY app, which is available in the App Store or Google Play, or type floridatoday.com/space into your browser.
Live weather radar: Will it rain in Melbourne, Cocoa Beach or Cape Canaveral, Florida, today? Will weather cancel a rocket launch?
Shown is the National Weather Service-Melbourne radar, which shows conditions in real-time for the Space Coast, Brevard County, Orlando and other parts of Florida. The current date and time show up on the bottom right of this radar embed; otherwise, you may need to clear your cache.
Where to see Florida rocket launch in Daytona Beach, New Smyrna Beach area
• Mary McLeod Bethune Beach Park, 6656 S. Atlantic Ave., New Smyrna Beach. Bethune Beach is 3.5 miles south of New Smyrna Beach and one mile north of the Apollo Beach entrance to Canaveral National Seashore Park.
• Apollo Beach at Canaveral National Seashore (south of New Smyrna Beach). Canaveral National Seashore runs along Florida's East Coast in Volusia County and Brevard County. To access Apollo Beach, take Interstate 95 to exit 249, then travel east until it turns into State Road A1A. Follow SR A1A south to the park entrance.
• Sunrise Park, 275 River Road, Oak Hill
• Goodrich's Seafood and Oyster House back deck, 253 River Road, Oak Hill
• Seminole Rest national historic site, 211 River Road, Oak Hill
• Riverbreeze Park, 250 H.H. Burch Road, Oak Hill
• Mary Dewees Park, 178 N. Gaines St., Oak Hill
• Nancy Cummings Park, 232 Cummings St., Oak Hill
• Jimmie Vann Sunrise Park, 275 River Road, Oak Hill
• A.C. Delbert Dewees Municipal Pier, 243 River Road, Oak Hill
• Bird Observation Pier on River Road across from A.C. Delbert Municipal Pier (see above)
• Rose Bay in Port Orange, Florida
• beaches along New Smyrna Beach, Florida
• New Smyrna Beach Inlet, New Smyrna Beach lifeguard station
• Halifax Harbor Marina in Daytona Beach, Florida
• Ormond-by-the-Sea in Ormond Beach, Florida
• George R. Kennedy Memorial Park in Edgewater, Florida
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Amazon-ULA Atlas V rocket launch in Florida after Father's Day: What time is liftoff?