Launch Complex 40
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SLC-40 in February 2010 with Falcon 9 v1.0 rocket carrying Dragon Spacecraft Qualification Unit
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| Launch site | Cape Canaveral Air Force Station | ||||||||||
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| Location | 28°33′44″N 80°34′38″W / 28.562106°N 80.577180°WCoordinates: 28°33′44″N 80°34′38″W / 28.562106°N 80.577180°W | ||||||||||
| Short name | SLC-40 | ||||||||||
| Operator | United States Air Force | ||||||||||
| Total launches | 79 | ||||||||||
| Launch pad(s) | 1 | ||||||||||
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Min / max orbital inclination |
28°–57° | ||||||||||
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| Launch history | |
|---|---|
| Status | Damaged in pad explosion; inactive pending repairs |
| First launch | 18 June 1965 Titan IIIC / Transtage |
| Last launch | 14 August 2016 Falcon 9 Full Thrust / SpaceX JC-SAT 16 |
| Associated rockets |
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Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40), previously Launch Complex 40 (LC-40) is a launch pad for rockets located at the north end of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The launch pad was used by the United States Air Force for 55 Titan III and Titan IV launches between 1965 and 2005.
After 2007, the US Air Force leased the complex to Space Exploration Technologies (usually shortened to SpaceX) to launch the Falcon 9 rocket. As of August 2016[update], there have been twenty-five launches of the Falcon 9 from the complex.
The first launch from LC-40 was the maiden flight of the Titan IIIC (June 18, 1965), carrying two transtage upper stages to test the functionality of the vehicle.
Two interplanetary missions were launched from the pad:
A total of 30 Titan IIICs, 8 Titan 34Ds and 17 Titan IVs were launched between 1965 and 2005. The final Titan launch from SLC-40 was the Lacrosse-5 reconnaissance satellite carried on a Titan IV-B on April 30, 2005.
The tower was disassembled during late 2007 and early 2008. Demolition of the Mobile Service Structure (MSS), by means of a controlled explosion, occurred on April 27, 2008, by Controlled Demolition, Inc.
On April 25, 2007, the US Air Force leased the complex to SpaceX to launch the Falcon 9 rocket. During April 2008, construction started on the ground facilities necessary to support the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Renovations included installation of new liquid oxygen and kerosene tanks and construction of a hangar for rocket and payload preparation.
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