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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 × | Palmachim Airbase 🇮🇱 Israel Active · Last updated 2026-06-01Trust: Operator-primaryⓘ Last verified Remove × | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | NASA | Israel Defense Forces / Israel Aerospace Industries | Houston Airport System |
| Ownership | Government | Military | Public-Private |
| Region | 🇺🇸 United States | 🇮🇱 Israel | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Launch pads | 2 active (LC-39A, LC-39B)as of [1] ↑ Most pads | 1 active (classified IAF facility)as of [1] | — |
| Annual launches | ~40as of [1]Combined NASA + SpaceX cadence from LC-39A and LC-39B ↑ Most active | 1–2as of [1] | 0 |
| Max payload (LEO) | 63,800 kg to LEO (Falcon Heavy expendable)as of [2] ↑ Highest capacity | ~350 kg to retrograde LEO (Shavit-2)as of [1]Launches westward over Mediterranean due to geopolitical overflight constraints; unusual retrograde orbit | — |
| First operational launch | 1967-11-09as of [1]SA-501 Apollo 4 — first Saturn V launch from LC-39A | 1988-09-19as of [2]Ofeq-1 — Israel's first satellite; first nation ever to launch into retrograde orbit from a dedicated national site | 2015 |
| Regulatory regime | NASA range safety + FAA-AST Part 450 for commercial users; co-managed with Eastern Range | Israel Space Agency (ISA) civil oversight; Ministry of Defense controls dual-use launches and Ofeq reconnaissance program | FAA-AST Launch Site Operator License (horizontal launch) |
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