Elon Musk has confirmed a new Starship launch pad is under construction in Florida.
The SpaceX and Tesla founder confirmed this week that a new Starship orbital launch pad is currently being built at Cape Canaveral, Florida, marking the first time a base has been built outside of Boca Chica, Texas, which is the company’s main base of operations.
In a tweet, Elon said: “Construction of Starship orbital launch pad at the Cape has begun (sic)”
The news comes as Elon has previously said he wants Florida to eventually be the launch site for the spacecraft he aims to use to take humans to the moon and Mars.
Concrete for the launch pad was actually poured back in 2019, but there hasn't been much activity on the site since – until now.
The new launch pad will be part of the existing launch complex at Kennedy Space Centre that SpaceX currently leases from NASA, which is where many of the company's Falcon 9 launches originate.
The first orbital flight of a Starship prototype is still set to launch from Texas next year, once SpaceX receives environmental clearance and a launch license from the Federal Aviation Administration.
Meanwhile, Elon said earlier this year he wanted to have Boca Chica in Texas officially renamed to Starbase.
Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino Jr. said at the time: "If SpaceX and Elon Musk would like to pursue down this path, they must abide by all state incorporation statutes. Cameron County will process any appropriate petitions in conformity with applicable law.”
