 Delta IV Heavy lifts off from SLC-6 in August 2013 | |||||||||||||
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| Launch site | Vandenberg Space Force Base | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | 34°34′53″N 120°37′36″W / 34.5813°N 120.6266°W | ||||||||||||
| Time zone | UTC−08:00 (PST) | ||||||||||||
• Summer (DST) | UTC−07:00 (PDT) | ||||||||||||
| Short name | SLC-6 | ||||||||||||
| Operator | United States Space Force | ||||||||||||
| Launch pad(s) | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Orbital inclination range | 55–145°[1] | ||||||||||||
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Vandenberg Space Launch Complex 6 (SLC-6, pronounced "Slick Six") is a launch pad and associated support infrastructure at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Construction at the site began in 1966, but the first launch didn't occur until 1995 due to program cancellations and subsequent repurposing efforts.
The site was originally envisioned to support Titan IIIM rockets and the Manned Orbiting Laboratory, however, these projects were terminated before SLC-6's completion. Between 1979 and 1986 the facilities received extensive modifications to accommodate the Space Shuttle. However, budgetary constraints, safety considerations, and political factors ultimately led to the cancellation of Shuttle operations from the West Coast.
SLC-6 facilitated four launches of Athena rockets between 1995 and 1999 with minimal modifications. Subsequently, it underwent modifications to support the Delta IV and Delta IV Heavy, which conducted ten successful missions between 2006 and 2022. In 2023, SpaceX secured a lease agreement for SLC-6, with plans to modify the facility for Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches commencing in 2025.
Vandenberg's southward launch trajectory is advantageous for deploying satellites into high-inclination polar and Sun-synchronous orbits, needed for weather forecasting, Earth observation, and reconnaissance missions as they enable comprehensive and regular global coverage. Launching into such orbits from the East Coast of the United States presents significant challenges due to geographical constraints.[3]
- ^ "Falcon User's Guide" (PDF). SpaceX. September 2021. p. 11.
- ^ https://twitter.com/SciGuySpace/status/1296462155559186436 Archived 20 August 2020 at the Wayback Machine, Ars Technica Senior Space Editor Eric Berger, 20 August 2020.
- ^ "Launch Sites". NASA Human Spaceflight Office. Archived from the original on 13 October 1999.