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Over 70 licensed launch facilities now operate globally — 20 commissioned since 2020.
| Attribute | Cape Canaveral Space Force Station 🇺🇸 United States Active · Last updated 2026-06-01Trust: Agency-primaryⓘ Last verified Remove × | Guiana Space Centre 🇫🇷 France Active · Last updated 2026-06-01Trust: Agency-primaryⓘ Last verified Remove × |
|---|---|---|
| Operator | United States Space Force | ESA / CNES |
| Ownership | Military | International Consortium |
| Region | 🇺🇸 United States | 🇫🇷 France |
| Launch pads | 4 active (SLC-40, SLC-41, SLC-37B, SLC-16 standby)as of [1] ↑ Most pads | 3 (ELA-4 Ariane 6, ZLV Vega-C, ELS Soyuz-retired 2022)as of [1] |
| Annual launches | ~40as of [1]Includes SpaceX SLC-40 Falcon 9 + ULA SLC-41 Atlas V operations | 4–8as of [1]Ariane 6 cadence ramping post-2024 return-to-flight; Vega-C return TBD |
| Max payload (LEO) | 22,800 kg to LEO (Falcon 9 Block 5)as of [2] ↑ Highest capacity | 10,735 kg to GTO (Ariane 6.4, dual-payload)as of [2] |
| First operational launch | 1950-07-24as of [1]Bumper 8 — first launch from Cape Canaveral | 1968-04-09as of [1]First Véronique sounding rocket; first orbital launch 1979-12-24 (Ariane 1, CAT-01) |
| Regulatory regime | U.S. Space Force Eastern Range + FAA-AST Part 450 for commercial operators | ESA Convention + French Space Operations Act (LOS, 2008) under CNES oversight |
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