Spaceport Cornwall: Scaling environmentally responsible space futures in South West England

This article explores conflicting environmental imaginaries that have surfaced around the development of Spaceport Cornwall, a satellite launch site in South West England. Spaceport Cornwall is significant for foregrounding environmental responsibility as a key promise of its development. In press releases they highlight that they are the first spaceport to carry out a full carbon impact assessment of their operations. They also present satellite data as an essential tool for monitoring climate change. Through the development of this ‘climate conscious’ space infrastructure, the spaceport promises to open a new economic future for Cornwall, grounded not in the extractive industries that shaped the region’s industrial past, but in visions of the region as an environmentally responsible space hub. However, the eco-friendly futures promoted by the spaceport have attracted criticism from local climate activists concerned with the environmental impact of the infrastructure. Drawing on fieldwork conducted with Spaceport Cornwall and local environmental groups, as well as the analysis of government documents and marketing materials, this article examines imaginaries of climate promise and peril that were articulated across multiple spatial and temporal scales in relation to this infrastructure during its pre-launch phase, as space became a key place-making tool for South West England.