Where are rockets usually launched from and why?

Launch Sites If a spacecraft is launched from a site near Earth's equator, it can take optimum advantage of the Earth's substantial rotational speed. Sitting on the launch pad near the equator, it is already moving at a speed of over 1650 km per hour relative to Earth's center.



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The equator makes Florida's case as the ideal launch place. According to NASA, all objects on earth move eastward with some level of velocity. That velocity is weakest at the northern and southern poles. So launching closer to the equator gives the rocket a speed boost, which NASA likened to a “running start.”

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Kodiak Island, located in Alaska, is considered one of the best locations in the world for polar launch operations, providing a wide launch azimuth and unobstructed downrange flight path.

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