SpaceX plans around 120 Starship rocket launches per year in Florida
SpaceX is planning up to 120 launches of its SpaceX rocket in Florida. This raises concerns – about the environment and about the competition.
(Image: SpaceX)
The US space company of tech billionaire Elon Musk, SpaceX, plans to carry out around 120 Starship rocket launches a year from the US state of Florida. This was reported by the tech magazine Techcrunch on Tuesday. Around 44 Starship rocket launches are to take off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center. According to previous information, a further 76 launches are to take place via a second launch pad on Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCFS). This has met with resistance from the competition, who see themselves at a disadvantage. In addition, the environment would be adversely affected by the large number of launches.
It is not yet clear whether SpaceX will even carry out 120 rocket launches per year within a six-mile zone on the Florida coast. This concerns both the planned 44 launches of the Starship rocket from the Kennedy Space Center and the launches from SLC-37. Public hearings are currently still being held on the planned 76 Starship launches from SLC-37. An old launch pad from the 1960s, which was last used by the United Launch Alliance for Delta IV Heavy launches in April and has been inactive since then, is to be put into operation there.
Potential environmental impact
In addition to the public hearings, the U.S. Space Force is conducting an environmental impact assessment. The Federal Aviation Administration is also preparing an environmental impact assessment for the Kennedy Space Center. Both studies will examine the extent to which the number of planned rocket launches and landings will affect the environment in the region. This includes the scrub jay, a bird that is native to Florida and classified as an endangered species.
The Space Force's environmental impact assessment is to examine the construction of an alternative, new launch pad by SpaceX, which could partially replace SLC-37. However, extensive construction work is required for this launch pad, known as SLC-50. For example, a seepage basin, fuel tanks and a collecting tower would have to be built, which is also not particularly good for the environment. However, SpaceX could end up with a total of four launch sites for its Starship rocket.
The Space Force's environmental impact assessment is not expected to be published before winter 2024. This should also show how many launches and landings of the reusable Starship can be carried out in an environmentally friendly manner.
Concerns of competing space companies
According to TechCrunch, the Space Force report is of a regulatory nature, but will not be made public until after the public hearings have been published. However, concerns from competitors Blue Origin and the United Launch Alliance about SpaceX's plans to use the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center have already been published.
Both space companies are concerned that such high-capacity utilization could also have an impact on other providers with launch infrastructure there. Blue Origin, for example, is therefore proposing that SpaceX or the US government compensate other space companies should their activities be impaired by Starship launches.
(olb)