List of Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island launch sites

Map of launch complexes on Merritt Island and Cape Canaveral
Looking east at LC-36, 40 and 41 on CCAFS in 2005

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 19681975, 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 1 Ares 1-X flight in 2009.

Site Status Uses
Launch Complex 39A NASA has leased LC-39A to SpaceX;
SpaceX is in pad redesign process[1][2]
Prior: Saturn V, Space Shuttle
Future: crewed Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy
Launch Complex 39B Inactive Prior: Saturn V, Saturn IB (Skylab and Apollo-Soyuz), Space Shuttle
Future: Space Launch System

Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

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 pre-Apollo 8 manned launches, 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
Space Launch Complex 13 Active Current: SpaceX Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy first stage landing site[3]
Formerly: Atlas, Atlas Agena
Space Launch Complex 40 Active Current: Falcon 9 cargo and satellite missions
Formerly: Titan III, Titan IV
Space Launch Complex 41 Active Current: Atlas V
Formerly: Titan III, Titan IV
Space Launch Complex 37B Active Current: Delta IV
Formerly: Saturn I, Saturn IB

Inactive sites

Site Status Uses
Launch Complex 1 Inactive Snark, Matador, Aerostat
Launch Complex 2 Inactive Snark, Matador, Aerostat
Launch Complex 3 Inactive Bumper-WAC, BOMARC, Polaris, X-17
Launch Complex 4 Inactive BOMARC, Redstone, Matador, Jason, Draco
Launch Complex 4A Inactive BOMARC
Launch Complex 5 Inactive Jupiter, Redstone, Mercury/Redstone.
The site of all six manned and unmanned Mercury/Redstone launches.
Launch Complex 6 Inactive Redstone, Jupiter
Launch Complex 9 Inactive Navaho
Launch Complex 10 Inactive Jason, Draco, Nike Tomahawk
Launch Complex 11 Inactive Atlas
Launch Complex 12 Inactive Atlas, Atlas Agena
Launch Complex 14 Inactive Atlas, Mercury/Atlas D, Atlas Agena


The site of all four manned Mercury/Atlas launches.

Launch Complex 15 Inactive Titan I, Titan II
Launch Complex 16 Inactive Titan I, Titan II, Pershing 1a
Launch Complex 17A Inactive Thor, Delta II
Launch Complex 17B Inactive Delta II, Delta III, Thor
Launch Complex 18 Inactive Viking, Vanguard, Thor, Blue Scout Junior, Blue Scout
Launch Complex 19 Inactive Titan I, Gemini/Titan II.
The site of all ten manned Gemini/Titan II launches.
Launch Complex 20 Inactive Titan I, Titan III, Starbird, Prospector, Aries, LCLV, Super Loki
Launch Complex 21 Inactive Goose, Mace
Launch Complex 22 Inactive Goose, Mace
Launch Complex 25 Inactive Polaris, X-17, Poseidon, Trident I
Launch Complex 26 Inactive Jupiter, Redstone
Launch site of Explorer 1 - the first successful U.S. satellite
Launch Complex 29 Inactive Polaris[4]
Launch Complex 30A Inactive Pershing 1
Launch Complex 31 Inactive Minuteman, Pershing 1a.
Used as a burial vault for the Space Shuttle Challenger
Launch Complex 32 Inactive Minuteman
Launch Complex 34 Inactive Saturn I, Saturn IB.
Site of Apollo 1 fire & Apollo 7 launch
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 37 Inactive Saturn I, Saturn IB
Launch Complex 43 Demolished Super Loki

Spaceport Florida

Main article: Space Florida

As of 2008, 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.[5] It is not known if the plan was subsequently implemented.

Site Status Uses
Space Launch Complex 36A Currently Inactive Atlas/Centaur,[5] Atlas II
Space Launch Complex 36B Currently Inactive Atlas, Atlas II, Atlas III
Space Launch Complex 46 Pending Reactivation[6] Athena (previous and future[6]), Trident II

Other

Site Status Uses
Atlantic Missile Range drop zone Inactive High Virgo, Bold Orion, Hound Dog, Skybolt
Grand Turk Island drop zone Inactive
Mobile Launch Area Inactive Lark, Matador, MX-775, Snark
SLBM Launch Area Inactive Polaris, Poseidon, Trident
Shuttle Landing Facility Active Pegasus
Cape Canaveral AFS Skid Strip Active Navaho, Pegasus, Pegasus XL
Patrick AFB Inactive Matador

References

  1. "SpaceX to bid for rights to historic NASA launch pad". Phys.org. 2013-12-13. Retrieved 2013-12-15.
  2. Boyle, Alan (2013-12-13). "SpaceX wins NASA's nod to take over historic Launch Pad 39A". NBC News. Retrieved 2013-12-18.
  3. Gruss, Mike. "SpaceX Leases Florida Launch Pad for Falcon Landings". Spacenews. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
  4. "Launch Complex 29". Air Force Space & Missile Museum. Retrieved 2011-12-15.
  5. 1 2 Craig Covault (Oct 27, 2008). "Boeing Joins Commercial Athena III Program". Retrieved 2010-12-23.
  6. 1 2 Messier, Doug (11 February 2014). "ATK to Upgrade Space Florida's Launch Complex 46". Parabolic Arc. Retrieved 24 December 2014.

External links

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