SLC-37, which currently houses United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV Heavy rocket, will remain vacant this year. SpaceX is proposing to convert this facility for launching Starships. By the way, this isn’t the first time SLC-37 has changed hands: Before its current mission at ULA, it served on NASA’s Saturn missions in the ’60s.
Environmental reviews are expected to take more than a year, with construction likely to begin in late 2025. Significant changes will need to be made because Starship needs new infrastructure, not existing infrastructure. But SpaceX has another option: Building a new SLC-50 launch pad north of SLC-37.
Why is SLC-37 important? Designed as a vehicle to colonize Mars and bring humans to Earth, Starship requires multiple launch and landing sites to achieve its ambitious goals, and SLC-37’s history and location provide advantages: it’s well-established and closer to SpaceX’s Florida operations.
Source: Ferra
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