skwatra Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 This morning, Mayor Annise Parker and the Houston Airport System announced that Ellington Airport will become a licensed commercial spaceport.Houston is one of 10 selected sites nationwide that's been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_cuevas713 Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 This is so huge for this city! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moore713 Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 Now the term game changer gets thrown around alot on here but this is a genuine. Game changer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moore713 Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 Just think about not just Ellington but the development for the surrounding area Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gene Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 wow i'm stoked! i love this city and so excited to see all the great things happening lately...and special thanks to this site and all the members that post all this great information and keep the excitement going! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunstar Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 I feel like it's time to update our city seal. Somehow a train and a plow don't cut it anymore. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobruss Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 This whole idea seems bizarre to me and also rather naive. I'm kinda surprised that the director of the Houston airport system is pushing this, though I doubt he has the gravitas and financial backing to make a credible go at it. If instead, it were backed by a visionary tech billionaire, I would be more optimistic that at least a serious attempt would be made. If just left up to the COH, I imagine it would be underfunded and ignored by anyone outside of Houston. Sorry to be negative, but I think this is the only realistic response. Archfan: Don't look now, but we just were awarded a spaceport. I realize you were probably talking about the actual building of this proposal, but never underestimate Houston. Hopefully it will be built as proposed. You have to admit that are airports are pretty nice so why wouldn't they create just as nice a place for the future spaceport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian0123 Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 (edited) I'm going to make a bold prediction here... when this thing is built (and we have flights leaving it that take a mere couple of hours to get to Europe or the middle east)... you'll see major oil giants leaving the energy corridor and Woodlands and flocking back Downtown. What self-respecting company will fly high priority business associates into Houston and then have them endure a car ride to a far flung suburb across town that takes almost as long as the flight itself? Edited June 30, 2015 by brian0123 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 Or maybe they'll start flocking to Pearland, south Houston, Clear Lake - the economics of lower land prices and plenty of empty space will still be there. I could see the Energy corridor withering some though once the Spaceport...takes off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amashgo Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 I feel like it's time to update our city seal. Somehow a train and a plow don't cut it anymore. Voila! 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 I'm going to make a bold prediction here... when this thing is built (and we have flights leaving it that take a mere couple of hours to get to Europe or the middle east)... you'll see major oil giants leaving the energy corridor and Woodlands and flocking back Downtown. What self-respecting company will fly high priority business associates into Houston and then have them endure a car ride to a far flung suburb across town that takes almost as long as the flight itself?That would be great if that happened. But they already do it with IAH. I'm sure real big wigs could take a helicopter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunstar Posted June 30, 2015 Share Posted June 30, 2015 Voila! post-60-0-11522600-1435684397_thumb.jpg That's more like it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
august948 Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 I'm going to make a bold prediction here... when this thing is built (and we have flights leaving it that take a mere couple of hours to get to Europe or the middle east)... you'll see major oil giants leaving the energy corridor and Woodlands and flocking back Downtown. What self-respecting company will fly high priority business associates into Houston and then have them endure a car ride to a far flung suburb across town that takes almost as long as the flight itself? I would think that an oil company would have helicopters based at Ellington and would just fly vip's wherever needed. Lot cheaper than moving the exxon campus south. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Maybe the spaceport can just have a fleet of black and yellow checkered helicopters standing by 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxtethogrady Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Looks like it's going to happen! If that were true, the ones in Midland and Brownsville would be under development already. The permit has happened, which is a small step, but there has to be a market for space travel before this one gets started. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFootsSocks Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 The Brownsville spaceport is underway and is actually only a private spaceport (first of its kind!) exclusively for SpaceX, who is kicking ass and will be back on their feet or rocket boosters in no time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fringe Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Hopefully there will be Uber spaceships. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gene Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Maybe the spaceport can just have a fleet of black and yellow checkered helicopters standing by by then there will be UberCopters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gene Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Hopefully there will be Uber spaceships. jinxhaha we were kinda on the same track Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 There is no way those are the final designs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luminare Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 (edited) There is no way those are the final designs. Probably not. Often owners of a proposed project will hire a separate firm to do pre-design work just to get the basic idea of things and come to grips with the scope. There are whole firms that just work on master plans like these. I would love to see this as a major international competition. Design a spaceport for space city. It sells itself! There so many great firms that could do it. I would love to see something that would attract the BIG's, OMA's, SOM's, Zaha's, and Foster's of the world. Other cities might be designing new fancy airports, but only Houston will be able to say they have a specially designed public use spaceport! Edited July 1, 2015 by Luminare Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
htownproud Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 am I the only one that thinks this will never really happen? it's likely being awarded the first teleport terminal or first station for a train to the planet jupiter, 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luminare Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 am I the only one that thinks this will never really happen? it's likely being awarded the first teleport terminal or first station for a train to the planet jupiter, If they can build a spaceport in freakin Brownsville, Texas then they can build one in Houston 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
intencity77 Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 am I the only one that thinks this will never really happen? it's likely being awarded the first teleport terminal or first station for a train to the planet jupiter,Even if it is built I have doubts that the renderings they've released will be the final product. Wouldn't surprise me if it was watered down drastically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skwatra Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Brownsville is really not a spaceport. In the future, it may become one. But it is being built by SpaceX as a private launch site for their use in the immediate future. They have a vehicle to launch today - well its grounded but many around JSC are thinking they will launch again in the first half of 2016. The vision for commercial spaceports are for future customers that don't exist. I'm not completely negative on Houston getting a "license", if something does come of this nationally, we have our foot in the door and be in the forefront. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luminare Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Even if it is built I have doubts that the renderings they've released will be the final product. Wouldn't surprise me if it was watered down drastically. How about yall quell your Battered Houston Syndrome for a least a few days? Why would you invest that much into something like a spaceport and water it down. I literally just explained this just a moment ago. Plus when are yall going to stop taking such personal ownership of images like these. Images like these are to get you excited and prepped for what is POSSIBLE! Not whats actually going to happen. It could be better or it could be the exact same thing, or a completely different design, but people on here need to stop with this sense of ownership in images which are expressly to give a visualization of what COULD BE! So why not just be excited about the possibilities? Why can't threads like these be fun and talk about the possibilities of something like this especially when 85 to 90% of the people on here are not even in the design industry at all. There are images like these that come and go all the time! Its part of the business. Probably not. Often owners of a proposed project will hire a separate firm to do pre-design work just to get the basic idea of things and come to grips with the scope. There are whole firms that just work on master plans like these. I would love to see this as a major international competition. Design a spaceport for space city. It sells itself! There so many great firms that could do it. I would love to see something that would attract the BIG's, OMA's, SOM's, Zaha's, and Foster's of the world. Other cities might be designing new fancy airports, but only Houston will be able to say they have a specially designed public use spaceport! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunstar Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Sierra Nevada is bidding on the second round of contracts from NASA to cover cargo deliveries to the ISS from 2017 to 2024, which is expected to be awarded later this year. The Obama administration had extended the life of the ISS to 2024. Assuming they win it, the cargo version of their Dream Chaser would land at Ellington space port per the agreement they signed earlier this year with the HAS. If that's the case, I would imagine that would help fast track development and firm up the final design of the Space Port. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rechlin Posted July 1, 2015 Share Posted July 1, 2015 Actually a Brownsville spaceport makes a lot more than one at Ellington Field. To take maximum advantage of Earth's rotation, you want a spaceport to be as close to the equator as possible, and you want the rocket to go east. Also, you want nothing but sea (or empty desert or something that won't have any people or property to harm) over the route it will initially go. This means you want to be as far south as possible, and you want the ocean to the east. Not only do you have a populated area just east of Ellington, but directly east would take you over southern Louisiana. This means launches would have to be angled to the south a bit. I can see this being used for suborbital flights, but anything to go into orbit or out into space would probably make more sense to launch from Brownsville (or Cape Canaveral), unless they need the particular orbit that Ellington would be ideal for. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skwatra Posted July 2, 2015 Share Posted July 2, 2015 For Ellington they are talking horizontal takeoff, the factors you are discussing are factors in vertical takeoff (I will say I don't exactly how they play in to horizontal takeoff). You also left off inclination which plays a bigger factor then orbital velocity. If you want more earth coverage for LEO satellites (or the space station though inclination there was also driven by the russians and soyuz injection) you want to launch at a higher latitude, or take up propulsion to get to that inclination post launch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoninATX Posted July 5, 2015 Share Posted July 5, 2015 I believe this will happen. It may not be built like what's pictured in the renderings, but I have full confidence that Houston will have a Spaceport. Also take a look at the Spaceport in Midland,TX. It's being built in phases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/blog/2015/09/business-incubator-coworking-space-to-launch-at.html The city of Houston plans to include a new incubator and co-working space on the grounds of the new spaceport located at Ellington Airport. Plans are still very early, airport and city officials point out, but the idea is to have small and large companies housed on the same campus to collaborate. The co-working space would conceivably include an incubation space for early-stage companies, more permanent offices for developing companies and even larger facilities for companies that need room to mass produce their products, Mario Diaz, Houston Airport System's aviation director, said during a presentation at a startup happy hour Sept. 22. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moore713 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 The Word game changer get thrown around alot on here but if this does come to fruitation the result effects it would have on the area truly could be in terms of residential, retail, etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted October 7, 2015 Share Posted October 7, 2015 http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/deer_park/news/purchase-of-building-at-ellington-a-key-step-in-houston/article_0aa0ac20-8448-542f-a203-802c5c7c574e.html An important step in the functional launch of the Houston Spaceport was taken on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2015, when Houston City Council members approved the $6.9 million purchase of an aerospace engineering building and land adjacent to Ellington Airport (EFD). Using airport funds for the purchase, the 53,000 square foot building will house a shared use manufacturing and general office facility, and already has prospective tenants. The Houston Airport System (HAS) has received a letter of intent to lease from both Intuitive Machines and UK-based Catapult Satellite Applications, and expects to receive others in the near future. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Triton Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/deer_park/news/purchase-of-building-at-ellington-a-key-step-in-houston/article_0aa0ac20-8448-542f-a203-802c5c7c574e.html Let's go get Matt Damon!!!! 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nasa-partners-with-houston-airport-system-in-development-of-spaceport-300169038.html HOUSTON, Oct. 29, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- News media are invited to visit NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) onWednesday, Nov. 4, at 1 p.m. to witness a landmark event as NASA and the Houston Airport System (HAS) formally enter a development agreement to provide NASA expertise and training at Houston's new Spaceport installation. The event will be preceded by a press conference. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFootsSocks Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 All I really want is the dope-af upgrades that were shown in The Martian. Call me when we've got Neo Space Age architecture Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunstar Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 All I really want is the dope-af upgrades that were shown in The Martian. Call me when we've got Neo Space Age architecture Baby steps. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 The Spaceport will be built in phases; may not turn out as the renderings shown. Spaceport - Phase I.pdf 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFootsSocks Posted November 19, 2015 Share Posted November 19, 2015 And the award for Least-Surprising Revelation goes to... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted December 22, 2015 Share Posted December 22, 2015 http://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/news/2015/12/21/131889/first-step-for-houstons-spaceport-new-control-tower/ Ellington Airport has been awarded a state grant to assist in building a new air traffic control tower. Once completed, it will not only support military operations, but will support the Houston Spaceport Project.The current control tower at Ellington was damaged in a 2008 hurricane. And it’s old. Construction on the new tower is slated to start next summer, to be open for operations in the fall of 2017. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFootsSocks Posted January 18, 2016 Share Posted January 18, 2016 So now that Sierra Nevada scored a contract for the second round of Commercial Cargo Resupply missions, I expect we'll see some important steps on the Spaceport happening soon. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post cspwal Posted March 8, 2016 Popular Post Share Posted March 8, 2016 Looks like Ellington has a rocket on the FAA charts now - we officially have a spaceport! 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Urbannizer Posted September 19, 2016 Popular Post Share Posted September 19, 2016 Houston spaceport development is looking up Houston airport officials are stepping up efforts to lure new aerospace tenants to Ellington Airport, the site of the ninth licensed spaceport in the United States. Last June, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) granted a launch site license to the airport, allowing Ellington to be used as launch site for reusable launch vehicles. Last year, the Houston Airport System spent 6.9 million US dollars to purchase a 53,000-square-foot office building that will house new spaceport tenants. The building, located near NASA's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory, had been solely occupied by Boeing until the company relocated part of its operations on July 31. Boeing now operates from a six-story building to serve the aerospace and defense sectors. Now, Houston aerospace officials are turning up the volume on efforts to land new tenants that will help usher in Houston's ascent into all things space. "We are developing infrastructure of the future and we're just getting it started," said Arturo Machuca, general manager of Ellington Airport and Houston Spaceport. "We still have plenty of good challenges in development ahead of us." The spaceport's first aerospace tenant, Intuitive Machines, moved into the mega-office complex on August 11 where it is building unmanned aerial systems, or drones, for commercial use. "It's a great opportunity and experience for us," said Health Mooney, director of production facilities management at Intuitive Machines. "We're the first ones (tenants) here. This is a burgeoning industry and this place will only grow and we want to be a part of it." Spaceport officials are working to include more aerospace entities into the fold. "We have ongoing conversations with other companies, including the Russian engineering company Progresstech," Machuca said. "They want to set up an operations facility that would be used to serve their US based clientele." Houston officials also have letters of intent from Sierra Nevada Corporation, which plans to transport cargo to the International Space Station, and from Catapult Satellite Applications to lease space at the office complex. Houston officials are also in talks with the Japanese Government Space Industry and South Korean airport officials who have expressed interest in partnering. Another potential tenant is California-based SpaceX, which designs, manufacturers and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft, Machuca said. "We haven't had conversations with them (SpaceX) as of yet," he said. "They could come, but not now. Currently they've been taking off from the Kennedy Space Center. Eventually they want to build a launch site in South Texas." Ellington's spaceport will be a hub for a new generation of space planes that will take off horizontally from Ellington, and once over the Gulf of Mexico will ascend into the lower reaches of space. "The possibilities are limited only by our imaginations," said Michael Wagoner, an inspector with the Houston Airport System. "A lot of what we're looking at is the same thing we had with the space shuttle, which is that you can take off from this airport and you can land at this airport. We're open to all possibilities." Bob Mitchell, president of the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership, said that development of the Houston Spaceport is moving smoothly. "We're working on a number of agreements that work perfectly into the commercial space model we're trying to create," he said. "We have three confidential projects that are close to decision, and if we land even one of them we are on our way to achieve our goal. It will drive the future innovation and technology for this region and for America." 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenOlenska Posted March 5, 2017 Share Posted March 5, 2017 I'm a little surprised no one posted this. Was down at my parents, got a look at an actual physical paper. And this was on it. About a grant for infrastructure. http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/article/Grant-seen-as-a-boost-for-Houston-Spaceport-10952195.php 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post AREJAY Posted May 11, 2017 Popular Post Share Posted May 11, 2017 https://www.bisnow.com/houston/news/construction-development/ellington-airport-new-tower-spaceport-74364 Quote Ellington Airport has broken ground on a new traffic control tower that will allow it to live up to its new branding as the Houston Spaceport. The tower will stand 143 feet tall, nearly double the height of the current one. It will be fitted with technology necessary to be mission control for NASA missions, and down the road, potential private space travel, News Talk Texas reports. Quote Already a base for NASA, Coast Guard and Air Force activities, the Spaceport is leasing space to several technology companies with the goal of becoming an aviation and space travel technology hub. While it does not serve commercial airline passengers, it is eyeing a future where it could do so for passengers to the stars. 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reporter Posted May 12, 2017 Share Posted May 12, 2017 Very exciting! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted July 6, 2017 Share Posted July 6, 2017 Houston to Select Design-Builder for Ellington Spaceport by December https://www.virtualbx.com/construction-preview/24842-houston-to-select-design-builder-for-ellington-spaceport-by-december.html Houston (Harris County) - The Houston Airport System (HAS) has begun the process of selecting a design-build firm to install infrastructure for a spaceport at Ellington Airport, and the intent is to have one under contract by December. Contractors were invited June 16 to submit Statements of Qualifications and they are due July 27. The selected contractor would constitute the third component of a development team for the construction of what has already been designated the 10th spaceport site in the United States. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swtsig Posted July 6, 2017 Share Posted July 6, 2017 i bet it looks exactly like the rendering! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twinsanity02 Posted July 6, 2017 Share Posted July 6, 2017 Any Haifers associated with NASA or something similar? Like to hear your opinions. Do not know what to make of this. It certainly looks good. It would be incredible if the application lives up to name. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobruss Posted July 7, 2017 Share Posted July 7, 2017 OK so this is just to hire a design build firm for only the infrastructure, i.e. the storm water drains, streets, electrical duct banks, gas lines and water lines. Not the actual spaceport. Just wanted to make sure we're all on the same page. Only if they iron out their questions for the latter sub phases. At least thats what I get out of this invitation. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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