Spaceport potential in Scotland

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Spaceport potential in Scotland

Postby stargazer » Sun Jul 13, 2014 9:44 am

Scotland could be base for spaceport, says UK government
BBC Scotland July 13 2014
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-s ... s-28276525
Scotland could host the UK's first dedicated base for spaceplanes, according to new government plans.

Ministers want to establish the UK spaceport by 2018 - the first of its kind outside of the US.

Eight aerodromes have been shortlisted and Scotland has six of the potential locations.

The Scottish government said only independence would lead to a greater development of the country's space industry.

For ministers and the space industry, the major interest in a UK spaceport is as a facility to enable satellite launches, but hopefully it would also become a centre for the new tourism initiatives from specialist operators such as Virgin Galactic and XCor.

Ahead of the announcement at this week's Farnborough Airshow, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander hinted that Scotland could become a key player in the UK government's future plans for developing commercial space travel.

He said: "I am delighted that the government is pushing forward with its ambitious plans to open a spaceport in the UK by 2018. Spaceports will be key to us opening up the final frontier of commercial space travel.

"Scotland has a proud association with space exploration. We celebrated Neil Armstrong's Scottish ancestry when he became the first man on the Moon and only last week an amazing Scottish company was responsible for building the UK Space Agency's first satellite.

"The UK space industry is one of our great success stories and I am sure there will be a role for Scotland to play in the future."
Spaceplane systems may need runway lengths of 3,000m and more

Earlier this week the The UKube-1, a satellite built by Glasgow-based technology firm Clyde Space, successfully launched on a test flight from Kazakhstan.

Figures from the government show that the space sector is one of the fastest growing industries in the UK.

The latest figures indicate it is now generating more than £11bn for the economy each year, and employs 34,000 people - an increase of almost 9% on employment figures from 2011.

Ministers hope to capitalise on this growth and capture 10% of the global space market by 2030, which could mean the creation of 100,000 additional jobs.
Skilled jobs

Business Secretary Vince Cable said: "Our world-leading and ambitious space sector is thriving.

"This week we will announce the next steps for this country's space race, outlining how we will take one giant leap towards establishing the first British spaceport by 2018 - making the UK the place for space."

News of the plan was welcomed by the Scottish government, who also stressed that Scotland's growing space industry would be strengthened by a "Yes" vote on 18 September.

A spokeswomen said: "The space sector offers huge economic potential for Scottish companies, indeed the first Scottish satellite, UKube-1, built by Clyde Space in Glasgow, successfully launched on 8 July.

"It was a landmark occasion and a clear example of the scientific and engineering excellence being demonstrated by Scotland's entrepreneurial innovators.

"That same day a report published by Dr Malcolm Macdonald from Strathclyde Space Institute at Strathclyde University found that independence could be worth £15 million to £20 million a year in the medium term and as much as £100 million a year in the longer term to the space sector industry."

She added: "Scotland is proving that it has the expertise to attract and support such a specialised, global industry, and as such an independent Scotland will be an attractive option for spaceport pioneers."
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Re: Spaceport potential in Scotland

Postby tarmmaker » Sun Jul 13, 2014 3:52 pm

[quote][She added: "Scotland is proving that it has the expertise to attract and support such a specialised, global industry, and as such an independent Scotland will be an attractive option for spaceport pioneers."/quote]

Why?
Whatever gets you thru the night. J Lennon.
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Re: Spaceport potential in Scotland

Postby stargazer » Tue Jul 15, 2014 11:21 am

Why not, this is obviously the opinion of the spokeswomen.
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Re: Spaceport potential in Scotland

Postby tarmmaker » Tue Jul 15, 2014 1:56 pm

I just couldn't see why an independent Scotland was more attractive to the space industry.
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Re: Spaceport potential in Scotland

Postby EphemeralDeception » Mon Jul 21, 2014 7:02 pm

The reason Scotland is a potential target is that there are few alternatives South of the border with both long runways and the availability/cost for the usage mainly in Scotland.

The UK has not, does not and will not promote anything in Scotland unless there are few alternatives or if it is something the UK Gov. want(are happy) to keep away from the South. This is just a simple fact that can be checked by looking at strategic decisions and development of UK infrastructure and major projects over the last 4 decades.

Going forward Successive UK governments have a strategic document for what they want to invest in and in which locations that is about 250 pages long. Half a page is devoted to Scotland, with almost no investment north of Leeds or Wales and Cornwall either.

The UK track record speaks for itself, with no need to look at politics or parties.
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Re: Spaceport potential in Scotland

Postby tarmmaker » Mon Jul 21, 2014 11:29 pm

Maybe the reason is the relative low population in Scotland.
Don't forget we have MP's for Scotland in Westminster. Make your complaints known to them.
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