在去年发射入轨载荷达到全球其余所有国家与商业航天企业总和四倍的基础上，SpaceX于8月25日宣布在路易斯安那州南部购入5万公顷土地。该公司与州政府联合宣布，将投资1000亿美元在位于新奥尔良以西约230公里的皮坎岛（Pecan Island）建设全球最大的航天发射场。该基地预计于明年开工，目标是在2029年实施首飞。完全建成后，园区将配备至少十个专为“星舰”（Starship）设计的巨型发射台，并自建推进剂储罐、深水港以及专用机场，终极目标是实现每天超过30次的高频火箭发射。
该发射枢纽旨在支撑星链卫星网络的快速扩张，并推动将数据中心送入近地轨道的战略构想，以充分利用太空中充沛的太阳能资源并规避地面邻避效应。相比于占地仅约140公顷的得克萨斯州星基地（Starbase）以及发射台拥挤的佛罗里达州卡纳维拉尔角，皮坎岛为SpaceX提供了完全专属的巨幅腹地。此外，轨道数据中心需要采用极地轨道运行，从路易斯安那州向南发射主要掠过开阔海域，仅穿过中美洲一小片陆地狭长地带，完全符合监管机构对落区安全的严苛要求。
在后勤与供应链方面，该基地可通过驳船直连SpaceX位于得州的巨型火箭制造工厂，并充分依托墨西哥湾成熟的石油天然气基础设施。由于单次“星舰”发射需消耗1300吨甲烷燃料，邻近路易斯安那州的天然气管网与储气设施可提供充沛稳定的能源保障。若能达成每日30次的发射目标，SpaceX的年入轨载荷运载能力将从2025年的约3800吨飙升至200万吨，从而在全球航天发射领域建立无可匹敌的绝对主导地位。
Having orbited four times as much payload mass last year as all other nations and commercial competitors combined, SpaceX confirmed on August 25th its acquisition of 50,000 hectares in southern Louisiana. In partnership with the state government, the company will invest $100bn to construct the world’s largest rocket-launch complex on Pecan Island, roughly 230km west of New Orleans. With construction scheduled to begin next year and maiden flights targeted for 2029, the site will feature at least ten dedicated Starship launch pads, propellant tank farms, a deep-water port, and an airport to support an unprecedented cadence of over 30 launches per day.
This mega-spaceport is designed to expand the Starlink broadband mega-constellation and deploy orbital data centres powered by limitless solar energy outside terrestrial regulatory constraints. Unlike the constrained 140-hectare Starbase site in Texas or shared pads at Florida’s Cape Canaveral, Pecan Island offers exclusive operational domain. Crucially, polar orbits required by space-based data centres demand north-south flight paths; southward launches from Louisiana fly almost entirely over open oceans, crossing only a narrow strip of Central American land to satisfy strict regulatory safety thresholds.
Logistically, the location facilitates direct barge transport from SpaceX’s Texas manufacturing hub while tapping into extensive Gulf Coast oil and gas infrastructure. Because each Starship launch consumes 1,300 tonnes of liquid methane, direct access to regional natural gas pipelines and bulk storage solves critical fueling bottlenecks. If the 30-launch daily target is realized, SpaceX’s annual orbital payload capacity will surge from roughly 3,800 tonnes in 2025 to 2m tonnes, cementing near-total dominance over the global space economy.
Source: SpaceX plans to build the world’s biggest spaceport
Subtitle: The $100bn facility aims to support up to 30 rocket launches a day
Dateline: Aug 27th 2026