Cape Canaveral, FL – SpaceX has announced a significant expansion of its Starship program, bringing production, integration, and launch capabilities to Florida’s Space Coast. The move, detailed in a recent update on the company’s website and shared via social media, marks a pivotal step in SpaceX’s mission to make humanity multiplanetary while enhancing U.S. leadership in space exploration and national security.
In addition to ongoing infrastructure development at Starbase, Texas—SpaceX’s headquarters—the company is now focusing on establishing a robust Starship presence at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This expansion includes the construction of a massive new integration facility, dubbed Gigabay, adjacent to SpaceX’s HangarX at Kennedy Space Center. Standing 380 feet tall, Gigabay will offer approximately 46.5 million cubic feet of interior processing space and 815,000 square feet of workspace, equipped with 24 work cells, elevated platforms, and cranes capable of lifting up to 400 U.S. tons. This facility, set to be operational by the end of 2026, will dwarf SpaceX’s existing Megabay facilities in Texas, providing over 11 times the workspace and nearly double the lifting capacity.
SpaceX also plans to complete a Starship launch and catch site at Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at Kennedy Space Center this year, incorporating lessons learned from the company’s first two Starship pads at Starbase. The site will feature a state-of-the-art deflector system for cooling and sound suppression during launches and catches, similar to the system being installed at Starbase’s second pad. Pending the completion of environmental reviews, SpaceX aims to conduct Starship’s first Florida launch from LC-39A in late 2025, further solidifying the Space Coast as a hub for cutting-edge spaceflight operations.
The expansion extends to Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, where SpaceX is exploring additional Starship launch opportunities. The company has secured a limited Right of Entry to conduct due diligence and environmental impact studies, led by the Department of the Air Force, to enable future Starship and Super Heavy operations at this historic site, previously used for NASA’s Apollo-era Saturn rockets and the Delta IV program.
