2005 U.S. Commercial Space Transportation Developments and Concepts SpaceportsU.S. Spaceport Locationslifted off from FSA’s LC-46. Table 3 summarizesthe characteristics of FAA/AST licensed spaceports.California SpaceportCalifornia SpaceportOn September 19, 1996, the California Spaceportbecame the first Commercial Spaceport licensed byFAA/AST. In June 2001, FAA/AST renewed thespaceport’s license for another five years. TheCalifornia Spaceport offers commercial launch andpayload processing services and is operated andmanaged by SSI, a limited partnership of ITTFederal Service Corporation. Co-located at VAFB onthe central California coast, SSI signed a 25-yearlease in 1995 for 0.44 square kilometers (0.17 squaremiles) of land. Located at latitude 34º North, theCalifornia Spaceport can support a variety of missionprofiles to low-polar-orbit inclinations, with possiblelaunch azimuths ranging from 220 degrees to 165degrees.Initial construction at the California Spaceport,Commercial Launch Facility began in 1995 and wascompleted in 1999. The design concept is based ona “building block” approach. Power and communicationscabling was routed underground to providea launch pad with the flexibility to accommodate avariety of launch systems. Additional work wascompleted in 2004 to build a rolling access gantry tosupport Minuteman and future Peacekeeper spacebooster derivatives. Although the facility is configuredto support solid propellant vehicles, plans arein place to equip the launch facility with supportsystems/commodities required by liquid-fueledboosters. The current SLC-8 configuration consistsFederal Aviation Administration/Office of Commercial Space Transportation 33
Spaceports2005 U.S. Commercial Space Transportation Developments and ConceptsSpaceport Location Owner/Operator Launch Infrastructure Development StatusCaliforniaSpaceportKodiak LaunchComplexSpaceport ownedby Florida SpaceAuthorityLompoc,CaliforniaKodiak Island,AlaskaCapeCanaveral,FloridaMid-Atlantic Wallops Island,Regional Spaceport VirginiaMojave AirportMojave,CaliforniaTable 3: Licensed Non-federal Spaceports: Infrastructure and StatusSpaceport SystemsInternationalAlaska <strong>Aerospace</strong>DevelopmentCorporationFlorida SpaceAuthorityExisting launch pads, runways,payload processing facilities,telemetry and tracking equipment.Launch control center, payloadprocessing facility, and integrationand processing facility. Limitedrange support infrastructure (usesmobile equipment).One launch complex, including apad and a remote control center; asmall payload preparation facility;and an RLV support facility.Virginia Commercial Two orbital launch pads, payloadSpace Flight Authority processing and integration facilityvehicle storage and assemblybuildings, on-site and downrangetelemetry and tracking, and payloadrecovery capability.East Kern AirportAir control tower, runway, rotor teststand, engineering facilities, highbay building.Work completed in 2004 to build a rolling accessgantry to support Minuteman and futurePeacekeeper space booster derivatives.Construction of the launch control center,payload processing facility, and integration andprocessing facility was completed in 2000.Has invested over $500 million to upgradelaunch sites, build an RLV support complexadjacent to the Shuttle landing facilities, anddevelop a new space operations supportcomplex.Currently completing $6.6 million in launch rangeimprovements. Invested $1.3 million to designand build a new Mobile Service Structure.Construction of a $4 million logistics andprocessing facility at NASA Wallops underway.MARS is adding a new mobile Liquid FuelingFacility capable of supporting a wide range ofliquid-fueled and hybrid rockets.FAA/AST approved site license. ScaledComposites’ SS1 has launched from this site forthe Ansari X Prize competition.of the following infrastructure: pad deck, supportequipment building, launch equipment vault, launchduct, launch stand, access tower, communicationsequipment, and Integrated Processing Facility (IPF)launch control room as well as the required WesternRange interfaces needed to support a launch. Thefinal SLC-8 configuration awaits future customerrequirements. When fully developed, the SLC-8Launch Facility will accommodate a wide varietyof launch vehicles, including the Minuteman-basedMinotaur and Castor 120-based vehicles, such asAthena and Taurus.Originally, the focus of the CaliforniaSpaceport’s payload processing services was on therefurbishment of the Shuttle Payload PreparationRoom. Located near SLC-6, this large clean roomfacility was originally designed to process threeSpace Shuttle payloads simultaneously. It is nowleased and operated by the California Spaceport asthe IPF. Today, payload-processing activities occuron a regular basis. The IPF has supported boosterprocessing, upper stage processing, encapsulationand commercial, civil, and USAF satellite processingand their associated administrative activities.The IPF can handle all customer payload processingneeds. This includes Delta 2, Delta 4, and Atlas5 class payloads as well as smaller USAF and commercialpayloads as required.The spaceport has received limited financialsupport from the state in the form of grants. In2000, it received about $180,000 to upgrade theeast breech load doors in the IPF transfer tower.The modification was completed in March 2001.The new transfer tower can accommodate 18-meter(60-foot) payloads. This will enable SSI to processand encapsulate satellites in support of the EELVprogram. In May 2001, SSI received approximately$167,000 to upgrade the satellite command andtelemetry systems. The state of California has alsoprovided some support for California Spaceportbusiness. In 2001, legislation was passed to removethe “sunset” clause on tax exemptions for commercialsatellites and boosters launched from VAFB,including California Spaceport.The California Spaceport provides payloadprocessing and orbital launch support services forcommercial, civil, and government users. TheCalifornia Spaceport provided payload-processingservices for NASA satellites including Landsat 7(1996); TIMED/Jason (2001); and Aqua (2002).The California Spaceport’s first polar launch wasJAWSAT, a joint project of the Air Force Academyand Weber State University, on a Minotaur spacelaunch vehicle in July 2000. To date, the site haslaunched two Minotaur launch vehicles. In 2002,SSI won a 10-year USAF satellite-processing con-34 Federal Aviation Administration/Office of Commercial Space Transportation
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