To propel missions throughout the solar system, NASA owns and operates two primary launch sites: Kennedy Space Center in Florida and Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Launch cadence at both locations has increased dramatically in recent years due to a surge in commercial activity. However, the infrastructure at Kennedy and Wallops is decades old and lacks the capacity to support these growing demands. Today, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a report assessing the state of NASA’s launch infrastructure and its ability to meet mission needs.
The OIG’s new report determined that, between 2020 and 2025, the number of launches at Kennedy and Wallops increased by 252 percent and 467 percent, respectively. Looking ahead, both launch sites could approach operational capacity in the 2028 to 2029 time frame.
Given the demand for super heavy-lift launch vehicles at Kennedy, additional launch pads may be required to keep pace with government and commercial missions, as well as operational timelines. However, locations for new pads are limited and would require time and resources to develop. Wallops is pursuing upgrades to enhance operational efficiency and expand launch capacity, while also conducting a study to assess the impact of increasing annual launches at the facility.
In addition, Kennedy’s common use infrastructure that provides electrical power, gas supply and distribution, and transportation to launch pads is in poor condition and lacks the capacity to support these growing needs. Wallops’ common use infrastructure, by contrast, does not face the same challenges thanks to recent upgrades.
Over the last 5 years, NASA’s construction and maintenance budgets have decreased between 11 and 47 percent when adjusting for inflation, delaying infrastructure upgrades. Although the majority of recent launches have been commercial missions, statutory funding barriers and cost recovery practices prevent commercial partners from contributing equitably to the Agency’s infrastructure projects.
The OIG made three recommendations to help maintain robust, reliable launch infrastructure and support the Agency’s plans to send crewed missions to the Moon and Mars.
