Are there any known reasons why there are no spaceports in the European Union?












10












$begingroup$


AFAIK, there are no spaceports in the European Union.



Why is it so?






spaceport







share|improve this question











$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You are correct, there are currently no space ports in Europe. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… for a few proposed ones.
    $endgroup$
    – PearsonArtPhoto♦
    7 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    no orbital spaceports, perhaps @PearsonArtPhoto
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @PearsonArtPhoto you have an answer to Excluding Russia, has Europe launched a single satellite or spacecraft into Earth's orbit and beyond from its own continent? that's helpful.
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    6 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    J.Doe are there parts of your question that aren't answered there?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    6 hours ago
















10












$begingroup$


AFAIK, there are no spaceports in the European Union.



Why is it so?






spaceport







share|improve this question











$endgroup$








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You are correct, there are currently no space ports in Europe. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… for a few proposed ones.
    $endgroup$
    – PearsonArtPhoto♦
    7 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    no orbital spaceports, perhaps @PearsonArtPhoto
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @PearsonArtPhoto you have an answer to Excluding Russia, has Europe launched a single satellite or spacecraft into Earth's orbit and beyond from its own continent? that's helpful.
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    6 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    J.Doe are there parts of your question that aren't answered there?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    6 hours ago














10












10








10





$begingroup$


AFAIK, there are no spaceports in the European Union.



Why is it so?






spaceport







share|improve this question











$endgroup$




AFAIK, there are no spaceports in the European Union.



Why is it so?






spaceport




spaceport






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited 1 hour ago









Peter Mortensen

20417




20417










asked 8 hours ago









J. DoeJ. Doe

825326




825326








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You are correct, there are currently no space ports in Europe. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… for a few proposed ones.
    $endgroup$
    – PearsonArtPhoto♦
    7 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    no orbital spaceports, perhaps @PearsonArtPhoto
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @PearsonArtPhoto you have an answer to Excluding Russia, has Europe launched a single satellite or spacecraft into Earth's orbit and beyond from its own continent? that's helpful.
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    6 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    J.Doe are there parts of your question that aren't answered there?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    6 hours ago














  • 2




    $begingroup$
    You are correct, there are currently no space ports in Europe. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… for a few proposed ones.
    $endgroup$
    – PearsonArtPhoto♦
    7 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    no orbital spaceports, perhaps @PearsonArtPhoto
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    @PearsonArtPhoto you have an answer to Excluding Russia, has Europe launched a single satellite or spacecraft into Earth's orbit and beyond from its own continent? that's helpful.
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    6 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    J.Doe are there parts of your question that aren't answered there?
    $endgroup$
    – uhoh
    6 hours ago








2




2




$begingroup$
You are correct, there are currently no space ports in Europe. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… for a few proposed ones.
$endgroup$
– PearsonArtPhoto♦
7 hours ago




$begingroup$
You are correct, there are currently no space ports in Europe. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… for a few proposed ones.
$endgroup$
– PearsonArtPhoto♦
7 hours ago




1




1




$begingroup$
no orbital spaceports, perhaps @PearsonArtPhoto
$endgroup$
– JCRM
7 hours ago




$begingroup$
no orbital spaceports, perhaps @PearsonArtPhoto
$endgroup$
– JCRM
7 hours ago




1




1




$begingroup$
@PearsonArtPhoto you have an answer to Excluding Russia, has Europe launched a single satellite or spacecraft into Earth's orbit and beyond from its own continent? that's helpful.
$endgroup$
– uhoh
6 hours ago






$begingroup$
@PearsonArtPhoto you have an answer to Excluding Russia, has Europe launched a single satellite or spacecraft into Earth's orbit and beyond from its own continent? that's helpful.
$endgroup$
– uhoh
6 hours ago














$begingroup$
J.Doe are there parts of your question that aren't answered there?
$endgroup$
– uhoh
6 hours ago




$begingroup$
J.Doe are there parts of your question that aren't answered there?
$endgroup$
– uhoh
6 hours ago










4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes


















29












$begingroup$

The area of the European Continent is too far away from the equator and there are very few places allowing an eastward orbital launch over an ocean. Used first stages should not crash on a densily populated ground.



But Guiana Space Centre is on French territory and thus a part of the European Union. French Guiana is an overseas department and region of France.



There have been a lot of historic rocket launch sites in European mainland used for suborbital launches, see this Wikipedia list.



A new spaceport is planned in Scotland for orbital launches, the Sutherland spaceport. Launches over the ocean are possible in north to northeast direction, but not in south to southeast. But when it is finished, it will be no European Union spaceport. (If there is no escape from Brexit)






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$









  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Esrange is mainland Europe, Maser 14 is slated for launch in June, reaching 240 km
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Note that for this reason, Israel is the only country that launches retrograde, to the West.
    $endgroup$
    – geoffc
    5 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The worlds busiest spaceport is at 63°N. The northern part of the EU is perfectly suitable for launches into polar orbit.
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    3 hours ago








  • 7




    $begingroup$
    What is the escape velocity for Brexit anyway?
    $endgroup$
    – corsiKa
    3 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @gerrit: But what would be the point of building a spaceport only for polar orbits, when the existing Guiana one can do that?
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago



















1












$begingroup$

Aha! But there is at least one spaceport in the European Union.



Namely Guiana Space Centre located in French Guiana – French overseas territory and hence part of the EU.






share|improve this answer








New contributor




Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$













  • $begingroup$
    this information was already in @Uwe's answer
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago



















1












$begingroup$

There are currently suborbital spaceports.



Esrange in Sweden launches sounding rockets, including some up to 678 km. That's nearly 300 km higher than the International Space Station, so it is definitely possible to launch a payload into space from within the European part of the European Union. Esrange cannot yet launch into orbit, buth they plan to.



The latitude is no objection, the most active spaceport in the world is at 63°N. The reason there are no orbital launches from the European part of the EU is that (relatively) low-latitude sites in Europe are too busy and nobody has been willing yet to invest the necessary money at a high-latitude site, when European satellites can launch from French Guyana or Baikonur. The benefit of being within the EU and without crossing an ocean has so far not been considered worth the money.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$













  • $begingroup$
    sending launch vehicles in the direction of Russia has the potential to be misinterpreted. With launches from America there's enough time to recognise they are orbital before a counterstrike
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    @JCRM True, a rogue balloon is bad enough!. Esrange already only launches straight north, there's too much population west (a 17k town 35 km away) or east (some 1500 people at a similar distance). IIRC they can only launch if there's less than 20 people in a 4000 km² zone or so (no launches in any direction during hunting season or certain reindeer seasons), so eastward orbital launches would not be an option anyway. If you have any other concerns I'm sure you can share them in any relevant consultation for Esranges plans :)
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    1 hour ago





















0












$begingroup$

Baikonur is further north than most of Italy, Spain, Greece the south of France. Geographically, downrange shots across the Mediterranean are possible from the whole SE shore of Spain or France and the boot of Italy as well as various large islands like Sicily. Maybe the area is just too crowded in general. It would be interesting to consider if the Mediterranean sea is even too crowded with ships to drop boosters on.






share|improve this answer









$endgroup$



Some of the information contained in this post requires additional references. Please edit to add citations to reliable sources that support the assertions made here. Unsourced material may be disputed or deleted.










  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The problem is that the higher the latitude of the launch site, the more delta-V it takes to get to an equatorial orbit (which is wanted for many satellites). The Russians didn't have much choice in launch site locations: Baikonur is about as far south as you can get in the old USSR, and these days isn't even in Russia.
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post. - From Review
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago











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4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes








4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes









active

oldest

votes






active

oldest

votes









29












$begingroup$

The area of the European Continent is too far away from the equator and there are very few places allowing an eastward orbital launch over an ocean. Used first stages should not crash on a densily populated ground.



But Guiana Space Centre is on French territory and thus a part of the European Union. French Guiana is an overseas department and region of France.



There have been a lot of historic rocket launch sites in European mainland used for suborbital launches, see this Wikipedia list.



A new spaceport is planned in Scotland for orbital launches, the Sutherland spaceport. Launches over the ocean are possible in north to northeast direction, but not in south to southeast. But when it is finished, it will be no European Union spaceport. (If there is no escape from Brexit)






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$









  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Esrange is mainland Europe, Maser 14 is slated for launch in June, reaching 240 km
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Note that for this reason, Israel is the only country that launches retrograde, to the West.
    $endgroup$
    – geoffc
    5 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The worlds busiest spaceport is at 63°N. The northern part of the EU is perfectly suitable for launches into polar orbit.
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    3 hours ago








  • 7




    $begingroup$
    What is the escape velocity for Brexit anyway?
    $endgroup$
    – corsiKa
    3 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @gerrit: But what would be the point of building a spaceport only for polar orbits, when the existing Guiana one can do that?
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago
















29












$begingroup$

The area of the European Continent is too far away from the equator and there are very few places allowing an eastward orbital launch over an ocean. Used first stages should not crash on a densily populated ground.



But Guiana Space Centre is on French territory and thus a part of the European Union. French Guiana is an overseas department and region of France.



There have been a lot of historic rocket launch sites in European mainland used for suborbital launches, see this Wikipedia list.



A new spaceport is planned in Scotland for orbital launches, the Sutherland spaceport. Launches over the ocean are possible in north to northeast direction, but not in south to southeast. But when it is finished, it will be no European Union spaceport. (If there is no escape from Brexit)






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$









  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Esrange is mainland Europe, Maser 14 is slated for launch in June, reaching 240 km
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Note that for this reason, Israel is the only country that launches retrograde, to the West.
    $endgroup$
    – geoffc
    5 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The worlds busiest spaceport is at 63°N. The northern part of the EU is perfectly suitable for launches into polar orbit.
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    3 hours ago








  • 7




    $begingroup$
    What is the escape velocity for Brexit anyway?
    $endgroup$
    – corsiKa
    3 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @gerrit: But what would be the point of building a spaceport only for polar orbits, when the existing Guiana one can do that?
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago














29












29








29





$begingroup$

The area of the European Continent is too far away from the equator and there are very few places allowing an eastward orbital launch over an ocean. Used first stages should not crash on a densily populated ground.



But Guiana Space Centre is on French territory and thus a part of the European Union. French Guiana is an overseas department and region of France.



There have been a lot of historic rocket launch sites in European mainland used for suborbital launches, see this Wikipedia list.



A new spaceport is planned in Scotland for orbital launches, the Sutherland spaceport. Launches over the ocean are possible in north to northeast direction, but not in south to southeast. But when it is finished, it will be no European Union spaceport. (If there is no escape from Brexit)






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$



The area of the European Continent is too far away from the equator and there are very few places allowing an eastward orbital launch over an ocean. Used first stages should not crash on a densily populated ground.



But Guiana Space Centre is on French territory and thus a part of the European Union. French Guiana is an overseas department and region of France.



There have been a lot of historic rocket launch sites in European mainland used for suborbital launches, see this Wikipedia list.



A new spaceport is planned in Scotland for orbital launches, the Sutherland spaceport. Launches over the ocean are possible in north to northeast direction, but not in south to southeast. But when it is finished, it will be no European Union spaceport. (If there is no escape from Brexit)







share|improve this answer














share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited 5 hours ago

























answered 7 hours ago









UweUwe

9,81822954




9,81822954








  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Esrange is mainland Europe, Maser 14 is slated for launch in June, reaching 240 km
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Note that for this reason, Israel is the only country that launches retrograde, to the West.
    $endgroup$
    – geoffc
    5 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The worlds busiest spaceport is at 63°N. The northern part of the EU is perfectly suitable for launches into polar orbit.
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    3 hours ago








  • 7




    $begingroup$
    What is the escape velocity for Brexit anyway?
    $endgroup$
    – corsiKa
    3 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @gerrit: But what would be the point of building a spaceport only for polar orbits, when the existing Guiana one can do that?
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago














  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Esrange is mainland Europe, Maser 14 is slated for launch in June, reaching 240 km
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    7 hours ago






  • 2




    $begingroup$
    Note that for this reason, Israel is the only country that launches retrograde, to the West.
    $endgroup$
    – geoffc
    5 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The worlds busiest spaceport is at 63°N. The northern part of the EU is perfectly suitable for launches into polar orbit.
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    3 hours ago








  • 7




    $begingroup$
    What is the escape velocity for Brexit anyway?
    $endgroup$
    – corsiKa
    3 hours ago










  • $begingroup$
    @gerrit: But what would be the point of building a spaceport only for polar orbits, when the existing Guiana one can do that?
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago








2




2




$begingroup$
Esrange is mainland Europe, Maser 14 is slated for launch in June, reaching 240 km
$endgroup$
– JCRM
7 hours ago




$begingroup$
Esrange is mainland Europe, Maser 14 is slated for launch in June, reaching 240 km
$endgroup$
– JCRM
7 hours ago




2




2




$begingroup$
Note that for this reason, Israel is the only country that launches retrograde, to the West.
$endgroup$
– geoffc
5 hours ago




$begingroup$
Note that for this reason, Israel is the only country that launches retrograde, to the West.
$endgroup$
– geoffc
5 hours ago




1




1




$begingroup$
The worlds busiest spaceport is at 63°N. The northern part of the EU is perfectly suitable for launches into polar orbit.
$endgroup$
– gerrit
3 hours ago






$begingroup$
The worlds busiest spaceport is at 63°N. The northern part of the EU is perfectly suitable for launches into polar orbit.
$endgroup$
– gerrit
3 hours ago






7




7




$begingroup$
What is the escape velocity for Brexit anyway?
$endgroup$
– corsiKa
3 hours ago




$begingroup$
What is the escape velocity for Brexit anyway?
$endgroup$
– corsiKa
3 hours ago












$begingroup$
@gerrit: But what would be the point of building a spaceport only for polar orbits, when the existing Guiana one can do that?
$endgroup$
– jamesqf
2 hours ago




$begingroup$
@gerrit: But what would be the point of building a spaceport only for polar orbits, when the existing Guiana one can do that?
$endgroup$
– jamesqf
2 hours ago











1












$begingroup$

Aha! But there is at least one spaceport in the European Union.



Namely Guiana Space Centre located in French Guiana – French overseas territory and hence part of the EU.






share|improve this answer








New contributor




Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$













  • $begingroup$
    this information was already in @Uwe's answer
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago
















1












$begingroup$

Aha! But there is at least one spaceport in the European Union.



Namely Guiana Space Centre located in French Guiana – French overseas territory and hence part of the EU.






share|improve this answer








New contributor




Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$













  • $begingroup$
    this information was already in @Uwe's answer
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago














1












1








1





$begingroup$

Aha! But there is at least one spaceport in the European Union.



Namely Guiana Space Centre located in French Guiana – French overseas territory and hence part of the EU.






share|improve this answer








New contributor




Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






$endgroup$



Aha! But there is at least one spaceport in the European Union.



Namely Guiana Space Centre located in French Guiana – French overseas territory and hence part of the EU.







share|improve this answer








New contributor




Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer






New contributor




Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.









answered 4 hours ago









GeenimetsuriGeenimetsuri

191




191




New contributor




Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.





New contributor





Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.






Geenimetsuri is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.












  • $begingroup$
    this information was already in @Uwe's answer
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago


















  • $begingroup$
    this information was already in @Uwe's answer
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago
















$begingroup$
this information was already in @Uwe's answer
$endgroup$
– JCRM
2 hours ago




$begingroup$
this information was already in @Uwe's answer
$endgroup$
– JCRM
2 hours ago











1












$begingroup$

There are currently suborbital spaceports.



Esrange in Sweden launches sounding rockets, including some up to 678 km. That's nearly 300 km higher than the International Space Station, so it is definitely possible to launch a payload into space from within the European part of the European Union. Esrange cannot yet launch into orbit, buth they plan to.



The latitude is no objection, the most active spaceport in the world is at 63°N. The reason there are no orbital launches from the European part of the EU is that (relatively) low-latitude sites in Europe are too busy and nobody has been willing yet to invest the necessary money at a high-latitude site, when European satellites can launch from French Guyana or Baikonur. The benefit of being within the EU and without crossing an ocean has so far not been considered worth the money.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$













  • $begingroup$
    sending launch vehicles in the direction of Russia has the potential to be misinterpreted. With launches from America there's enough time to recognise they are orbital before a counterstrike
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    @JCRM True, a rogue balloon is bad enough!. Esrange already only launches straight north, there's too much population west (a 17k town 35 km away) or east (some 1500 people at a similar distance). IIRC they can only launch if there's less than 20 people in a 4000 km² zone or so (no launches in any direction during hunting season or certain reindeer seasons), so eastward orbital launches would not be an option anyway. If you have any other concerns I'm sure you can share them in any relevant consultation for Esranges plans :)
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    1 hour ago


















1












$begingroup$

There are currently suborbital spaceports.



Esrange in Sweden launches sounding rockets, including some up to 678 km. That's nearly 300 km higher than the International Space Station, so it is definitely possible to launch a payload into space from within the European part of the European Union. Esrange cannot yet launch into orbit, buth they plan to.



The latitude is no objection, the most active spaceport in the world is at 63°N. The reason there are no orbital launches from the European part of the EU is that (relatively) low-latitude sites in Europe are too busy and nobody has been willing yet to invest the necessary money at a high-latitude site, when European satellites can launch from French Guyana or Baikonur. The benefit of being within the EU and without crossing an ocean has so far not been considered worth the money.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$













  • $begingroup$
    sending launch vehicles in the direction of Russia has the potential to be misinterpreted. With launches from America there's enough time to recognise they are orbital before a counterstrike
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    @JCRM True, a rogue balloon is bad enough!. Esrange already only launches straight north, there's too much population west (a 17k town 35 km away) or east (some 1500 people at a similar distance). IIRC they can only launch if there's less than 20 people in a 4000 km² zone or so (no launches in any direction during hunting season or certain reindeer seasons), so eastward orbital launches would not be an option anyway. If you have any other concerns I'm sure you can share them in any relevant consultation for Esranges plans :)
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    1 hour ago
















1












1








1





$begingroup$

There are currently suborbital spaceports.



Esrange in Sweden launches sounding rockets, including some up to 678 km. That's nearly 300 km higher than the International Space Station, so it is definitely possible to launch a payload into space from within the European part of the European Union. Esrange cannot yet launch into orbit, buth they plan to.



The latitude is no objection, the most active spaceport in the world is at 63°N. The reason there are no orbital launches from the European part of the EU is that (relatively) low-latitude sites in Europe are too busy and nobody has been willing yet to invest the necessary money at a high-latitude site, when European satellites can launch from French Guyana or Baikonur. The benefit of being within the EU and without crossing an ocean has so far not been considered worth the money.






share|improve this answer











$endgroup$



There are currently suborbital spaceports.



Esrange in Sweden launches sounding rockets, including some up to 678 km. That's nearly 300 km higher than the International Space Station, so it is definitely possible to launch a payload into space from within the European part of the European Union. Esrange cannot yet launch into orbit, buth they plan to.



The latitude is no objection, the most active spaceport in the world is at 63°N. The reason there are no orbital launches from the European part of the EU is that (relatively) low-latitude sites in Europe are too busy and nobody has been willing yet to invest the necessary money at a high-latitude site, when European satellites can launch from French Guyana or Baikonur. The benefit of being within the EU and without crossing an ocean has so far not been considered worth the money.







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share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer








edited 2 hours ago

























answered 3 hours ago









gerritgerrit

6,3382772




6,3382772












  • $begingroup$
    sending launch vehicles in the direction of Russia has the potential to be misinterpreted. With launches from America there's enough time to recognise they are orbital before a counterstrike
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    @JCRM True, a rogue balloon is bad enough!. Esrange already only launches straight north, there's too much population west (a 17k town 35 km away) or east (some 1500 people at a similar distance). IIRC they can only launch if there's less than 20 people in a 4000 km² zone or so (no launches in any direction during hunting season or certain reindeer seasons), so eastward orbital launches would not be an option anyway. If you have any other concerns I'm sure you can share them in any relevant consultation for Esranges plans :)
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    1 hour ago




















  • $begingroup$
    sending launch vehicles in the direction of Russia has the potential to be misinterpreted. With launches from America there's enough time to recognise they are orbital before a counterstrike
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago












  • $begingroup$
    @JCRM True, a rogue balloon is bad enough!. Esrange already only launches straight north, there's too much population west (a 17k town 35 km away) or east (some 1500 people at a similar distance). IIRC they can only launch if there's less than 20 people in a 4000 km² zone or so (no launches in any direction during hunting season or certain reindeer seasons), so eastward orbital launches would not be an option anyway. If you have any other concerns I'm sure you can share them in any relevant consultation for Esranges plans :)
    $endgroup$
    – gerrit
    1 hour ago


















$begingroup$
sending launch vehicles in the direction of Russia has the potential to be misinterpreted. With launches from America there's enough time to recognise they are orbital before a counterstrike
$endgroup$
– JCRM
2 hours ago






$begingroup$
sending launch vehicles in the direction of Russia has the potential to be misinterpreted. With launches from America there's enough time to recognise they are orbital before a counterstrike
$endgroup$
– JCRM
2 hours ago














$begingroup$
@JCRM True, a rogue balloon is bad enough!. Esrange already only launches straight north, there's too much population west (a 17k town 35 km away) or east (some 1500 people at a similar distance). IIRC they can only launch if there's less than 20 people in a 4000 km² zone or so (no launches in any direction during hunting season or certain reindeer seasons), so eastward orbital launches would not be an option anyway. If you have any other concerns I'm sure you can share them in any relevant consultation for Esranges plans :)
$endgroup$
– gerrit
1 hour ago






$begingroup$
@JCRM True, a rogue balloon is bad enough!. Esrange already only launches straight north, there's too much population west (a 17k town 35 km away) or east (some 1500 people at a similar distance). IIRC they can only launch if there's less than 20 people in a 4000 km² zone or so (no launches in any direction during hunting season or certain reindeer seasons), so eastward orbital launches would not be an option anyway. If you have any other concerns I'm sure you can share them in any relevant consultation for Esranges plans :)
$endgroup$
– gerrit
1 hour ago













0












$begingroup$

Baikonur is further north than most of Italy, Spain, Greece the south of France. Geographically, downrange shots across the Mediterranean are possible from the whole SE shore of Spain or France and the boot of Italy as well as various large islands like Sicily. Maybe the area is just too crowded in general. It would be interesting to consider if the Mediterranean sea is even too crowded with ships to drop boosters on.






share|improve this answer









$endgroup$



Some of the information contained in this post requires additional references. Please edit to add citations to reliable sources that support the assertions made here. Unsourced material may be disputed or deleted.










  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The problem is that the higher the latitude of the launch site, the more delta-V it takes to get to an equatorial orbit (which is wanted for many satellites). The Russians didn't have much choice in launch site locations: Baikonur is about as far south as you can get in the old USSR, and these days isn't even in Russia.
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post. - From Review
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago
















0












$begingroup$

Baikonur is further north than most of Italy, Spain, Greece the south of France. Geographically, downrange shots across the Mediterranean are possible from the whole SE shore of Spain or France and the boot of Italy as well as various large islands like Sicily. Maybe the area is just too crowded in general. It would be interesting to consider if the Mediterranean sea is even too crowded with ships to drop boosters on.






share|improve this answer









$endgroup$



Some of the information contained in this post requires additional references. Please edit to add citations to reliable sources that support the assertions made here. Unsourced material may be disputed or deleted.










  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The problem is that the higher the latitude of the launch site, the more delta-V it takes to get to an equatorial orbit (which is wanted for many satellites). The Russians didn't have much choice in launch site locations: Baikonur is about as far south as you can get in the old USSR, and these days isn't even in Russia.
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post. - From Review
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago














0












0








0





$begingroup$

Baikonur is further north than most of Italy, Spain, Greece the south of France. Geographically, downrange shots across the Mediterranean are possible from the whole SE shore of Spain or France and the boot of Italy as well as various large islands like Sicily. Maybe the area is just too crowded in general. It would be interesting to consider if the Mediterranean sea is even too crowded with ships to drop boosters on.






share|improve this answer









$endgroup$



Baikonur is further north than most of Italy, Spain, Greece the south of France. Geographically, downrange shots across the Mediterranean are possible from the whole SE shore of Spain or France and the boot of Italy as well as various large islands like Sicily. Maybe the area is just too crowded in general. It would be interesting to consider if the Mediterranean sea is even too crowded with ships to drop boosters on.







share|improve this answer












share|improve this answer



share|improve this answer










answered 4 hours ago









Johnny RobinsonJohnny Robinson

1,771617




1,771617



Some of the information contained in this post requires additional references. Please edit to add citations to reliable sources that support the assertions made here. Unsourced material may be disputed or deleted.




Some of the information contained in this post requires additional references. Please edit to add citations to reliable sources that support the assertions made here. Unsourced material may be disputed or deleted.









  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The problem is that the higher the latitude of the launch site, the more delta-V it takes to get to an equatorial orbit (which is wanted for many satellites). The Russians didn't have much choice in launch site locations: Baikonur is about as far south as you can get in the old USSR, and these days isn't even in Russia.
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post. - From Review
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago














  • 1




    $begingroup$
    The problem is that the higher the latitude of the launch site, the more delta-V it takes to get to an equatorial orbit (which is wanted for many satellites). The Russians didn't have much choice in launch site locations: Baikonur is about as far south as you can get in the old USSR, and these days isn't even in Russia.
    $endgroup$
    – jamesqf
    2 hours ago






  • 1




    $begingroup$
    This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post. - From Review
    $endgroup$
    – JCRM
    2 hours ago








1




1




$begingroup$
The problem is that the higher the latitude of the launch site, the more delta-V it takes to get to an equatorial orbit (which is wanted for many satellites). The Russians didn't have much choice in launch site locations: Baikonur is about as far south as you can get in the old USSR, and these days isn't even in Russia.
$endgroup$
– jamesqf
2 hours ago




$begingroup$
The problem is that the higher the latitude of the launch site, the more delta-V it takes to get to an equatorial orbit (which is wanted for many satellites). The Russians didn't have much choice in launch site locations: Baikonur is about as far south as you can get in the old USSR, and these days isn't even in Russia.
$endgroup$
– jamesqf
2 hours ago




1




1




$begingroup$
This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post. - From Review
$endgroup$
– JCRM
2 hours ago




$begingroup$
This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post. - From Review
$endgroup$
– JCRM
2 hours ago


















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