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Over 70 licensed launch facilities now operate globally — 20 commissioned since 2020.
| Attribute | Kennedy Space Center 🇺🇸 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 | NASA | ESA / CNES | Oita Prefecture / NTT Communications consortium |
| Ownership | Government | International Consortium | Public-Private |
| Region | 🇺🇸 United States | 🇫🇷 France | 🇯🇵 Japan |
| Launch pads | 2 active (LC-39A, LC-39B)as of [1] | 3 (ELA-4 Ariane 6, ZLV Vega-C, ELS Soyuz-retired 2022)as of [1] ↑ Most pads | — |
| Annual launches | ~40as of [1]Combined NASA + SpaceX cadence from LC-39A and LC-39B | 4–8as of [1]Ariane 6 cadence ramping post-2024 return-to-flight; Vega-C return TBD | 0 |
| Max payload (LEO) | 63,800 kg to LEO (Falcon Heavy expendable)as of [2] | 10,735 kg to GTO (Ariane 6.4, dual-payload)as of [2] ↑ Highest capacity | — |
| First operational launch | 1967-11-09as of [1]SA-501 Apollo 4 — first Saturn V launch from LC-39A | 1968-04-09as of [1]First Véronique sounding rocket; first orbital launch 1979-12-24 (Ariane 1, CAT-01) | 2020 |
| Regulatory regime | NASA range safety + FAA-AST Part 450 for commercial users; co-managed with Eastern Range | ESA Convention + French Space Operations Act (LOS, 2008) under CNES oversight | MEXT / Cabinet Office Space Activities Act (2018, amended 2023); Oita Airport operates under Japan Civil Aviation Bureau |
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