
The British Are Building a Spaceport - adventured
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-07-15/the-british-are-building-a-spaceport
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isostatic
Previous discussion:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17546006](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17546006)

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aclelland
As someone with two young children and who lives only a few hours away from
the proposed site, I'm really excited at the possibility of taking them to see
some launches.

I just hope that bureaucracy, Brexit or political interference don't end up
with Scotland missing out on this opportunity

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gadders
TBH I'd also worry about environmental concerns scuppering it.

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arethuza
I can't image it could have a worse environmental impact that the (fairly)
nearby military firing ranges south of Cape Wrath - I don't think we are
exactly short of boggy mooreland in Scotland!

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andyjohnson0
It's a Site of Special Scientific Interest, part of a designated Special
Landscape Area, and a blanket bog habitat of the kind that doesn't occur much
outside Scotland. It is also an area of great beauty, and I find it sad that
it's going to be sacrificed for the convenience of a multinational
corporation.

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arethuza
Looking at the SNH site tt looks like part of the area is a SSSI - but a large
area is not:

[https://gateway.snh.gov.uk/sitelink/siteinfo.jsp?pa_code=1](https://gateway.snh.gov.uk/sitelink/siteinfo.jsp?pa_code=1)

A development like this might actually be good for conservation as it is
likely to prevent much else being developed in the immediate area.

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ArtWomb
Spaceport construction and operation looks like a great business model! It's
essentially leasing the land and providing all ancillary safety services. For
which you can charge a fee per rocket launch. A market that is certain to
experience explosive growth in coming decades. Florida coast alone is planning
two new spaceports, as well as major upgrades to existing facilities.

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jacknews
"A market that is certain to experience explosive growth in coming decades."

LOL.

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dboreham
Old rule : if something is bad then it'll be reported as "Scottish" but if
good then the headline will be "British".

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jacknews
Huh? I don't see too much English, or British whisky, British salmon, Lowland
knits etc, but I see plenty of British cheese, wine, science, arts, etc. Some
Scottish chips too, perhaps.

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dboreham
I'm referring to events reported in the English media. e.g if a Scottish
tennis player looses it'll be reported as "Tragedy as Scottish Player Fails in
Finals". Same player wins and the headline is "Joy as British Tennis Player
Wins Championship".

You probably have to be Scottish to notice.

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Nursie
Hope it's more successful than "Spaceport America".... a fascinating day trip,
if you're in the area, but I can't help but feel sorry for the NM taxpayers
who were persuaded to contribute.

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varshithr
Brexit effect?

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rwmj
Deflection from Brexit most likely. Chance of it actually happening, I would
say around 0.1%. There'll be no money for anything except airlifting vital
food and medicines around once hard Brexit takes hold.

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jbob2000
I think you're right that this is just pandering. You need to be near the
equator to launch rockets effectively (checkout this pdf from NASA that
explains how they use the Earth's rotation to gather momentum:
[https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/142825main_Bobsled_Launch.pdf](https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/142825main_Bobsled_Launch.pdf)).

So yeah, nobody is going to do any space flight from Northern anything.

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isostatic
> So yeah, nobody is going to do any space flight from Northern anything.

Better tell these guys:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Spaceport_Complex_%E2%...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Spaceport_Complex_%E2%80%93_Alaska)

