List of Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island launch sites
 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (December 2010) |
Cape Canaveral and adjacent Merritt Island on Florida's Atlantic coast are home to two American spaceports, one civilian and one military, servicing several active launch sites.
John F. Kennedy Space Center
The civilian John F. Kennedy Space Center, operated by NASA, has one launch complex with two pads on Merritt Island. From 1968–1975, it was the site of 13 Saturn V launches, three manned Skylab flights and the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project; all Space Shuttle flights from 1981–2011, and one Ares 1-X flight in 2009.
| Site | Status | Uses |
|---|---|---|
| Launch Complex 39A | Active Owned by NASA, Leased to SpaceX |
Current: Falcon Heavy, Falcon 9 Block 5 Prior: Saturn V, Space Shuttle Future: BFR (rocket) |
| Launch Complex 39B | Inactive Owned by NASA, will be used by Northrop Grumman Innovation Sys. |
Prior: Saturn V, Saturn IB (Skylab and Apollo-Soyuz), Space Shuttle Future: Space Launch System, Omega |
| Launch Complex 49 (old 39C) | 1963 Plan, Never built Owned by NASA, Environmental study Blue Origin |
Prior: planned Saturn V, not built Future (potential, if built): New Armstrong |
The military Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), operated by the 45th Space Wing of the U.S. Air Force, was the site of all U.S. manned launches before Apollo 8, as well as many other early Department of Defense (DoD) and NASA launches. For the DoD, it plays a secondary role to Vandenberg AFB in California, but is the launch site for many NASA unmanned space probes, as those spacecraft are typically launched on Air Force launchers. Active launch vehicles are in bold.
Much of the support activity for CCAFS occurs at Patrick Air Force Base to the south, its reporting base.
Active sites
| Site | Status | Uses |
|---|---|---|
| Launch Complex 13 (Landing Zone 1 and 2) |
Active | Current: Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy first stage landing site[1] Formerly: Atlas, Atlas Agena |
| Space Launch Complex 37B | Active | Current: Delta IV Formerly: Saturn I, Saturn IB, planned Saturn C-3 |
| Space Launch Complex 40 | Active | Current: Falcon 9 Block 5 Formerly: Titan III, Titan IV, Falcon 9 v1.0, Falcon 9 1.1 |
| Space Launch Complex 41 | Active | Current: Atlas V Formerly: Titan III, Titan IV Future: Vulcan |
| Launch Complex 47 | Active (has been unused for some time) | Current: Rocketsonde Sounding Rocket and Super Loki |
Inactive sites
Spaceport Florida
As of 2008[update], the U.S. Air Force committed to lease Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 36 to Space Florida for future use by the Athena III launch system.[3] It is not known if the plan was subsequently implemented.[needs update] Blue Origin leased Complex 36 in 2015, with plans to launch its reusable orbital vehicle from there by 2020.[4]
| Site | Status | Uses |
|---|---|---|
| Space Launch Complex 36A | Undergoing renovation for New Glenn[4] | Atlas/Centaur,[3] Atlas II[citation needed], New Glenn (future)[4] |
| Space Launch Complex 36B | Undergoing renovation for New Glenn[4] | Atlas, Atlas II, Atlas III, New Glenn (future)[4] |
| Space Launch Complex 46 | Pending Reactivation[5] | Athena, Trident II,[6] Minotaur IV (future)[7], Vector-R (future) |
Other
| Site | Status | Uses |
|---|---|---|
| Atlantic Missile Range drop zone | Inactive | High Virgo, Bold Orion, Hound Dog, Skybolt |
| Grand Turk Auxiliary AFB, Grand Turk Island drop zone | Inactive | Arcas (All-Purpose Rocket for Collecting Atmospheric Soundings) |
| Mobile Launch Area | Inactive | Lark, Matador, Snark[8] |
| Eastern SLBM Launch Area | Active | Polaris, Poseidon, Trident |
| Shuttle Landing Facility | Active | Pegasus, X-37B |
| Cape Canaveral AFS Skid Strip | Active | Navaho, Pegasus, Pegasus XL |
| Patrick AFB | Inactive | Matador |
References
- ^ Gruss, Mike. "SpaceX Leases Florida Launch Pad for Falcon Landings". Spacenews. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
- ^ "Launch Complex 29". Air Force Space & Missile Museum. Archived from the original on 7 April 2012. Retrieved 15 December 2011.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ a b Craig Covault (27 October 2008). "Boeing Joins Commercial Athena III Program". Retrieved 23 December 2010.
- ^ a b c d e "Coming to the Space Coast". Blue Origin. 15 September 2015. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
- ^ Messier, Doug (11 February 2014). "ATK to Upgrade Space Florida's Launch Complex 46". Parabolic Arc. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
- ^ "Complex 46". robsv.com. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
- ^ "U.S. Air Force's ORS-5 Satellite To Launch on Minotaur 4".
- ^ "HISTORIC AMERICAN ENGINEERING RECORD, CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, LAUNCH COMPLEX 34 OPERATIONS SUPPORT BUILDING" (PDF). National Aeronautic and Space Administration. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 December 2016. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)
External links