Spaceport

A spaceport is a site for launching spacecraft, by analogy with airport for aircraft. Typically the site is large enough that should a rocket explode it will not endanger human lives or adjacent launch pads.

It is believed that future hypersonic aircraft will require a very long runway rather than a vertical launch pad. Such hypothetical spaceports will present unique challenges in noise abatement, zoning, and passenger access, with as much as a 5 mile wide corridor surrounding a 30 mile long runway. A dedicated mass transit system from the nearest public access point to the aircraft boarding area will be required.

Some of the main spaceports are:

• Alcantara space base, Maranhao, Brazil
• Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
• Centre Spatial Guyanais at Kourou, French Guiana
• Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China
• Kennedy Space Center, Florida
• Plesetsk cosmodrome, Russia
• Tanegashima Space Center, Tanegashima Island, Japan
• Vandenberg AFB, California