Space Florida, which is working on upgrading wastewater facilities at the cape and expanding wharf space for the industry at Port Canaveral, manages certain operations at the spaceport through property leased from the federal government, including launch and landing facilities through an agreement with NASA.

Read The numbers are notable - 34 years of testing space shuttle main engines at NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St

Experts agree China is a valid threat to NASA's return to the moon plans. Here's why there is a rush to get SLS off the launch pad.

The 2026 Nasa budget proposal would slash around US$6 billion (£4.4 billion) in funding. This is a huge reduction, amounting to around 25% of recent Nasa budgets. The savings would mainly come from Nasa science programmes, potentially devastating high profile missions and international collaborations.