Issac Morgan
Following the 2023 Space Day in the Capitol, Senate members heard two presentations from space industry officials in Florida pushing for the state to become the leading portal to outer space.
Lawmakers from the Senate Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs, Space and Domestic Security spoke with representatives from the Kennedy Space Center in Central Florida and Space Florida.
Officials showed them video presentations of rocket launch missions and urged the state to take advantage of innovative industries connected to aerospace, including manufacturing, mining, energy production and tourism.
“No one has set the standards that are going to be used in the solar system,” said Dale Ketcham, vice president of government and community relations for Space Florida. “I think Florida is going to play a key role in whether or not those standards are ours or someone else’s.”
“One of the reasons we’ve been successful to date is intentionally planning to make sure that all of the space infrastructure that we helped bring about is fully integrated into the state’s Department of Transportation. Because our goal is to create Florida as the primary port of departure and entry for the solar system in the future,” he added.
Janet Petro, center director at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said the Kennedy Space Center launches various Artemis missions authorized by the agency.
“We led the way on the space coast on NASA property on our side of the river,” Petro said. “The future looks really, really bright. We are looking to be the supply chain to space.”
“I am biased but I do think Kennedy Space Center is the crown jewel of the agency,” she said. “We have 10 field centers within NASA spread throughout the country. Texas was talked about. All of them are trying to mimic what we’ve done at Kennedy. We are kind of the model. They are jealous of us.”
She invited lawmakers to tour the visitor complex at the Kennedy Space Center where students from across the nation and in Florida have visited on field trips.
“It is rapidly becoming like the place to go. If you haven’t been there, I would encourage you to go out. I would love to host you at the visitors center,” she said. “It has rides, it has all kinds of things. You get to meet an astronaut.”
Sen. Victor Torres, who is Vice Chair of the committee, raised concerns about funding for kids to attend trips to see space stations in Florida. He said one of the “broad issues that schools have is funding to make the trips.”
“We want them to go into figuring out new ways to better expose them to hardware and astronauts and all the neat stuff that’s going on.”
