Project Sunrise: Blue Origin Targets Orbital Data Centres

Blue Origin is setting out plans to expand data centre infrastructure beyond Earth, proposing a vast orbital network designed to support AI workloads.

The company has filed with the US Federal Communications Commission to deploy up to 51,600 satellites under what it calls Project Sunrise.

The proposal introduces a new layer of digital infrastructure, positioning space-based compute as an extension of traditional data centres.

Rather than replacing terrestrial facilities, the network is designed to complement them by operating independently of land, power and cooling constraints.

According to the filing, the system would function as a distributed data centre environment in orbit, providing additional capacity for compute-intensive workloads.

Extending data centre capacity beyond Earth

The rationale behind Project Sunrise reflects the growing pressure on terrestrial data centres. As AI workloads increase, operators face constraints linked to land availability, energy supply and cooling requirements.

Blue Origin argues that orbital infrastructure can ease these challenges by relocating part of the compute layer into space.

In its FCC submission, the company describes orbiting servers as “a complement to terrestrial infrastructure by introducing a new compute tier that operates independently of Earth-based constraints”.

The proposal also highlights the environmental dimension of data centre expansion.

Blue Origin states: “The Project Sunrise system will ease mounting pressure on US communities and natural resources by shifting energy- and water-intensive compute away from terrestrial data centres, reducing demand on land, water supplies and electrical grids.”

By moving compute into orbit, the company suggests that demand for power and water – both critical resources for data centre operations – could be reduced at ground level.

Power, cooling and cost considerations

A central element of the concept is energy supply.

Unlike terrestrial data centres, which rely on grid connections or on-site generation, the satellites would operate using continuous solar power.

Blue Origin plans to position the constellation in sun-synchronous orbit – a path that ensures satellites remain exposed to sunlight throughout their operation.

This allows for consistent energy generation without the variability seen in ground-based renewable systems.

The company also points to cost implications, stating: "The built-in efficiencies of solar-powered satellites, always-on solar energy, lack of land or displacement costs and non-existent grid infrastructure disparities fundamentally lower the marginal cost of compute capacity compared to terrestrial alternatives."

Cooling is another factor.

In space, thermal management differs from traditional data centre environments, where air or liquid cooling systems are required to dissipate heat.

While the company does not detail its full cooling approach, the absence of atmospheric constraints could change how heat is managed in orbit.

Architecture and connectivity

Project Sunrise outlines a large-scale distributed system, with satellites operating at altitudes between 500km and 1,800km.

Each orbital plane would host between 300 and 1,000 satellites, forming a dense network capable of handling substantial compute workloads.

Communication between satellites would rely on optical intersatellite links – laser-based connections that enable high-speed data transfer.

These links would form a mesh network, allowing data to move efficiently across the constellation without relying on ground stations for every interaction.

Connectivity back to Earth would be handled through Blue Origin’s planned TeraWave broadband system.

This would provide the link between orbital compute resources and terrestrial users, integrating space-based capacity with existing data centre and cloud environments.

The company is also seeking approval to use Ka-band radio frequencies for telemetry, tracking and control, which are essential for managing satellite operations.

Deployment challenges and competition

Despite the scale of the proposal, Project Sunrise faces practical and regulatory hurdles.

Blue Origin has so far launched its New Glenn rocket twice, and the deployment of tens of thousands of satellites would require sustained launch capacity over many years.

The supporting TeraWave network is also still in development, with the first satellites yet to be deployed.

These dependencies add complexity to the timeline for delivering operational orbital data centre capacity.

Environmental considerations are another factor.

Blue Origin states it will follow guidelines to limit orbital debris and plans to deorbit satellites within five years of the end of their operational life.

It also commits to working with the astronomy community to reduce the visual impact of the constellation.

The company is not alone in exploring this direction.

Other organisations like SpaceX are also proposing large satellite networks aimed at supporting digital infrastructure, often using similar approaches such as sun-synchronous orbits and optical links.

Project Sunrise places data centres at the centre of this activity, reframing them as distributed systems that could extend beyond terrestrial limits while remaining connected to existing cloud and network ecosystems.