The U.S. Air Force has given the go-ahead for SpaceX to transform a former Delta 4 launch location at Cape Canaveral into a launch complex tailored for its Starship program. According to a record of decision dated November 20th, Michael Saunders, acting assistant secretary of the Air Force for energy, installations, and the environment, officially approved SpaceX's proposal to repurpose Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station for Starship launches. This decision followed a comprehensive environmental impact statement (EIS) assessment of the project.
The record of decision and the final EIS document were made public last week on the project's website. The Air Force refrained from making a separate announcement regarding the decision. The U.S. Space Force, a component of the Air Force, had stated earlier in 2024 its intention to investigate the conversion of SLC-37 into a Starship launch facility. Originally constructed in the 1960s for Saturn 1 rockets, the launch pad was later adapted for United Launch Alliance's Delta 4. The final Delta 4 Heavy launch from the site took place in April 2024.
Initial plans involved assessing the potential of converting SLC-37 for Starship launches, alongside the construction of a new Starship launch facility at a site designated SLC-50, a greenfield location situated between SLC-37 and SLC-40, which SpaceX utilizes for its Falcon 9 missions. However, SLC-50 was subsequently excluded from consideration during the evaluation process. "While SLC-50 was under consideration during the early scoping phases of the EIS process, it was ultimately eliminated from detailed study after site archaeological surveys were completed and showed it was an area with high potential for archaeological sites and endangered species,” the final EIS stated.
The study concluded that building and operating a Starship launch pad at SLC-37 — including up to 76 Starship/Super Heavy launches per year and 152 landings of the Super Heavy booster and Starship upper stage — would generally have no significant environmental impact. One key exception was noise from launches and landings. “Local communities could be exposed to relatively high-level noise and overpressure environments from the launch and landings of Starship and Super Heavy boosters,” the report stated. “Operations would have significant impact on community annoyance.”
The assessment determined that zones of "significant structural damage" resulting from noise and overpressure would be confined within Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and the adjacent Kennedy Space Center. Nevertheless, unreinforced structures within these zones could be susceptible to damage. “While upgrades and renovations have been made to infrastructure within CCSFS, it is important to recognize that some buildings were originally constructed to support legacy launch programs and vehicles from an earlier era. Consequently, impacts to windows or other structural elements are possible,” the report said.
Regions of Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach, Florida, would experience weaker overpressure levels due to sonic booms generated by vehicle landings. However, the study concluded that the likelihood of damage to buildings "is generally between 1 in 10,000 and 1 in 100,000 which is considered extremely unlikely, though there is a higher potential to affect windows and bric-a-brac."
SpaceX intends to construct two Starship launch pads at SLC-37, in addition to associated infrastructure. These pads will complement the existing two pads at Starbase, Texas, and another under construction at Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center. “With three launch pads in Florida, Starship will be ready to support America’s national security and Artemis goals as the world’s premiere spaceport continues to evolve to enable airport-like operations,” SpaceX said in a statement following the approval.
SpaceX has indicated that construction at SLC-37 is underway but has not yet disclosed the expected completion date for the facilities or the schedule for the inaugural launch from the site.