Inside the Pentagon, the pressure is on to find a home for a new spaceport
Space Force considering options: public-private, federal installation, state land.
Space Force considering options: public-private, federal installation, state land.
The short version
- Leaders in the US Space Force would like to have a new spaceport up and running in four years, adding a third heavy-lift launch site to relieve pressure from bases in Florida and California that have shot rockets into orbit for nearly 70 years.
- The obvious problem with that ambition is 2030 is four years away, and Pentagon officials have not determined where the new spaceport should go or how to acquire land for it.
- Air Force Secretary Troy Meink first mentioned the service’s search for a third launch base in May.
What happened
A congressionally mandated study of the Space Force’s launch infrastructure identified the need for “another site that’s capable of heavy and super heavy launch capability,” Meink said in a House Armed Services Committee hearing. The Trump administration released a space transportation policy in August that endorsed the construction of more launch and reentry sites for commercial and military missions.
Why it matters
This week, the Space Force general responsible for procuring launch services for the military laid out an “aspirational” timeline for a new launch site.
Summary by Nerd News Network. Read the full article at Ars Technica via the links above and below.