Why All The Spaceports Are In Red States
The transcript discusses how federal land availability in red states, particularly in the American Southwest, will likely become locations for new federal spaceports following a White House executive order. The speaker explains that western states like Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona, which contain substantial federally-owned land, are leading candidates for space launch facilities, while private spaceports are expected to develop on the Gulf Coast.
Summary
The speaker references a White House announcement that included an executive order directing the Secretary of the Interior to appropriate federal land for federal spaceports. This prompts a discussion about where such land is likely to be found. The speaker identifies that the federal government owns substantial tracts of land concentrated in red states, particularly in the American Southwest. Specific locations mentioned as leading candidates include White Sands National Missile Range in New Mexico, the Nevada Test and Training Range, and Goldwater Range in Arizona. The speaker theorizes that this geographic distribution may or may not be coincidental. The anticipated outcome is that federal space bases (referred to as "star bases") will be established in the American Southwest, while private space launch facilities will develop on the Gulf Coast. This distribution of federal and private spaceports is presented as a means to achieve an estimated 30,000 launch units per unit time capacity.
Key Insights
- The White House announcement contained a buried executive order to the Secretary of the Interior to appropriate federal land for federal spaceports
- The federal government owns concentrated tracts of land in red states, particularly Nevada and Utah, making them the likeliest candidates for federally-owned spaceports
- Specific leading candidates for spaceport locations include White Sands National Missile Range in New Mexico, Nevada Test and Training Range, and Goldwater Range in Arizona
- The speaker suggests the concentration of federal land in red states and spaceport placement may or may not be coincidental
- The anticipated spaceport distribution strategy involves federal space bases in the American Southwest and private space bases on the Gulf Coast to achieve 30,000 launch units per unit time capacity
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] Going back, Peter, to your comment on the White House announcement, buried in that announcement was uh an executive order to the Secretary of the Interior to start appropriating federal land for federal spaceports. And so, if if you pull the string a bit and ask where are we likely to get federallyowned land for spaceports, I don't know if folks want to guess what the the likeliest candidates are, we're I think we're going to get a few of them. Any takers? >> Let's see. Where's all the federal land? Nevada, Utah. [0:30] >> Exactly. So my calculus is >> in red states. >> May or may not be a coincidence that the federal government owns so much…
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