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The Space Force is changing the way it thinks about spaceports
- bell-cot 3y ago...but Congress doesn't want to put up money to just maintain the infrastructure. Let alone keep it updated. (Yes, I read about the $5 million. That's penny-ante compared to the work needed.) Suggestion: His Majesty's Commonwealth has a number of islands in locations more favorable (for space launch) than the Cape or Vandenberg. Perhaps some serious competition could improve the situation?
- T-A 3y agovon Braun liked Kiritimati [1], and who can blame him? But the logistics seem daunting. You'd have to build up something comparable to KSC (staff: ~13k [2]) almost from scratch (there is a runway at Aeon Field and a JAXA tracking station on the other side of the island), in a place with a native population of only a few thousand, and bring in every rocket and payload halfway across the Pacific. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiritimati#Prospective_launch_sites https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiritimati#Prospective_launch_... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_Space_Center https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_Space_Center
- bell-cot 3y agoVs. His Majesty's Commonwealth could offer "Plan B To Space" on Bahama, Barbuda, Bermuda, or British Virgin Islands - all relatively close to the US Space Coast. Want near-equatorial launch? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascension_Island https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ascension_Island is less than 8 degrees south of it, and still vastly more convenient than Kiritimati. Looking at Rocket Lab's New Zealand launch complex - I'm thinking that nothing like 13K staff would be needed for a new, modern facility.