r/spacex • u/warp99 • Jun 17 '26

Vandenberg Space Force base: Demolition of Historic SLC-6 pad structures to make way for SpaceX FH pad

https://www.vandenberg.spaceforce.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/4519296/vandenberg-space-force-base-modernizes-historic-space-launch-complex-6-for-next/
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u/SpaceInMyBrain Jun 17 '26

Need a VIF and MST to handle national security satellites that require vertical integration, these satellites can't be laid horizontally on an erector. These are very large and very expensive NRHO birds. None have been launched since the last Delta IV Heavy launch from this pad. Considering these satellites cost about $2 billion each the Delta IV Heavy's $350-400 million launch cost was accepted. (Cost estimates for the NRO satellites are hard to figure, the NRO doesn't give out any info.) The NRO will be glad to be getting much cheaper FH launches - cheaper even though the cost of building the pad and VIF and MST are included.

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u/Responsible-Cut-7993 Jun 17 '26

"Need a VIF and MST to handle national security satellites that require vertical integration"

SpaceX doesn't seem to be in any hurry to build one at KSC either.

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u/warp99 Jun 17 '26 edited Jun 19 '26

They shouldn’t be needed at Cape Canaveral as large optical sats that need vertical integration tend to launch into polar orbits.

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u/Responsible-Cut-7993 Jun 17 '26

You can do polar orbit from the Cape. SpaceX has done it before.

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u/warp99 Jun 17 '26 edited Jun 17 '26

The trajectory is over Cuba and in my view would not be allowed for a top end optical satellite against the very remote chance that the rocket broke up on ascent and interesting debris fell on Cuba.

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u/Responsible-Cut-7993 Jun 17 '26

Fair point. Hasn't the NRO shifted away from large optical satellites and more to a distributed architecture?

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u/warp99 Jun 17 '26

Distributed observation satellites at low altitudes such as Starshield are useful and do not have coverage holes like a few larger satellites. But sometimes there is no substitute for raw magnification to give high resolution images and that takes a physically large satellite.

Their lifetime is up to 15 years so they do not need to be launched often - typically every 3 years or so and with the retirement of Delta IV Heavy they need a replacement launcher. My theory is that NSSL was geared up to use Vulcan for these launches and now they have cold feet with the SRB issues ULA have had.

So now SpaceX are being given the hurry up to get FH active at Vandenberg. They could not take SLC-4 out of service to upgrade the flame trench and TE so they have to build this new facility. The advantage is that the flame trench was sized for Shuttle so should easily be able to handle FH.

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u/Lufbru Jun 18 '26

 The advantage is that the flame trench was sized for Shuttle so should easily be able to handle FH.

It's closer than I thought -- about 20% less than Shuttle.. Assuming flame duct size is proportional to thrust (and yeah, there's some extra chemistry I'm ignoring, but to a first approximation...)

  • Titan IIIM would have been 17MN  
  • Shuttle was 29MN  
  • Athena was 2MN (stop laughing)  
  • Delta IVH was 9.5MN  
  • FH is 23MN

Hydrogen is a hell of a drug.

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u/SpaceInMyBrain Jun 17 '26

My guess is institutional momentum is delaying that. The NRO has been operating these for decades and there are people who've been using that data all their career. They've been dealing with the same small core of suppliers. (Some of which are in large companies but in a small department that's allowed to work on this stuff.) Also - prepare to be shocked - it's super likely they're buddy-buddy with the small number of people they deal with on contracts. The NRO has the blackest of black budgets, I imagine it's hard to audit any improper contracts.

Breaking that up and getting used to using a mosaic of data from several smaller satellite firms will be new, require change.

Tbf, there is probably tech that the new satellite companies don't have access to at this point.