SpaceX plans to regularly launch its monster launch vehicle Starship from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, according to a new environmental impact statement, and to do so it will renovate its Apollo-era launch pad and build a new one.

The Starship launch vehicle has been in the news several times in recent years; especially since its first two attempts to reach orbit ended fieryly. However, if familiarity breeds contempt, it also tends to destroy the sense of scale. SpaceX’s new flagship rocket isn’t just a showcase of new technology or cool retro lines; It’s a complete spaceship monster.

Frankly speaking, Starship is the largest and most powerful rocket that has ever flown. The fully assembled first and second stages stand at 394 feet (120 m), while the Apollo Saturn V, which sent the first astronauts to the Moon, stands at only 363 feet (111 m). In addition, Starship 33 Raptor’s engines produce more than 16 million pounds of thrust, twice as much thrust as the Saturn V.

It even towers above NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS), which sits at 371 feet (114 m) and still has twice the thrust. In terms of payload, Starship can launch 150 tonnes into orbit and both stages can return to Earth for reuse. In its current configuration, the SLS can lift only 95 tonnes and is a single-use booster.

Another difference is that Starship is designed for frequent, repeat flights, where SLS only flies once every two years. Imagine repeating the Apollo 11 launch every few weeks, and that explains why SpaceX wanted to attribute it at least in part to Kennedy.

When SpaceX attempted its first orbital launch from the company’s facility in Texas, the impact on the ground was impressive and beyond devastating. SpaceX engineers have developed the launch pad quite a bit.

The Saturn V’s launch pads were massive structures with heavy concrete structures, steel spray ducts, and systems that doused everything with giant water sprays to protect them from the five massive Formula 1 engines. Starship was pretty simple; It caused concrete slabs to shatter, wildfires, damage to cars far from the area, and a huge dust cloud. So much debris flew into the air that environmental problems arose, and the US FAA took a very strict stance on improving the launch vehicle as well as the design of the Starship. The result was a second flight in which the launch pad remained virtually intact, although both stages of the rocket exploded.

According to an environmental impact statement submitted by the U.S. Space Force, it proposes to take over Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37), which was built in 1959 and was used to test the first Apollo launch vehicles and also served as a launch site. unmanned Apollo 5 mission. It is currently used by United Launch Alliance to power the Delta 4 Heavy rocket, which will be retired in favor of the Vulcan later this year. SLC-37 will be partially demolished and rebuilt for Starship service.

The statement stated that as an alternative, another complex called SLC-50 could be built nearby for the same purposes. Few details about the project have been released because it is routine under the National Environmental Policy Act, but the Space Force application underscores the military’s interest in Starship. In recent years, the U.S. Air Force and Space Force have been considering Starship as a possible military transport for cargo and troops that could reach anywhere in the world in less than an hour. There is also speculation that the Space Force is looking to purchase or lease Starship rockets, which it would use without SpaceX’s involvement.

Whatever the details, the maintenance and construction of such large launch complexes shows that the future of commercial launches will be very different from the future of the space race. Instead of just a few launches a year, we could see superheavy rockets taking off on their tails with an incredibly powerful and destructive thrust that would be as routine as a jet plane taking off.