Florida Remains Launch Pad to Space Thanks to Private Firms
Categories: Technical News Technology
Florida Remains Launch Pad to Space Thanks to Private Firms
Since the first U.S. moon landing in 1969, we have been fascinated with the mystery of space. Fast forward to 2016, when we’re celebrating the 5th-year anniversary since NASA launched JUNO and the August 19 ULA Delta IV launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
Despite the current U.S. space program weathering some storms, the aerospace industry is enjoying a renaissance, thanks to private firms in Florida and its recognition as the next high-tech utopia.
The High-Tech Corridor, located in Central Florida, is home to a plethora of companies such as Craig Technologies, Northrup Grumman, United Launch Alliance (ULA), Blue Origin and Space Florida, among others.
These companies are shaping the future, which holds a generous helping of manned space travel. ULA — a partnership between Lockheed Martin and The Boeing Company — has been working on a crew launch vehicle to fly the first Operation Test Flight (OFT) in late 2017. Blue Origin is building its new 750,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, set to open in December 2017.
“Today’s Florida space industry is a far cry from what it was six years ago,” says Frank DiBello, president and CEO of Space Florida, an economic development organization for the aerospace business. “We have revitalized the industry and today, we’re not only the busiest space port, but we’re now building and landing rockets, next-generation spacecraft, in state-of-the-art facilities.”
In order to feed the contractors who are flooding the Sunshine State, Florida’s colleges and universities are preparing a new workforce for the opportunities that a new space program will offer.
Colleges such as Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach and Florida Institute of Technology are producing some of the world’s most elite and sought-after engineers and the next generation of rocket scientists. At the University of Central Florida, students are leading the world in simulation and nanotechnology sciences, as demand for these sciences continues to grow in both the public and private sector.
In addition to the presence of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), there are two spaceports in Jacksonville and on Florida’s Space Coast, Brevard County’s Cape Canaveral. An aerospace manufacturing powerhouse, Florida houses companies such as L-3 Crestview Aerospace in Florida’s Panhandle, B/E Aerospace in Palm Beach County, and HEICO in Broward County.
“Florida’s in a very unique position with a longstanding history, NASA, the various military bases, as well as some of the commercial aerospace industry that’s been here,” says Anish Patel, President of Radiant Power Corp.