Viewing Guide
Vandenberg Launch Pads
The five active launch complexes at Vandenberg Space Force Base
Five pads, six decades of spaceflight
Vandenberg's five active launch complexes have supported American spaceflight since 1963 — from Cold War reconnaissance satellites aboard Atlas and Titan rockets to today's SpaceX Falcon 9 missions and Firefly Alpha commercial launches. Each pad has its own operator mix, trajectory preferences, and viewing geometry from the 805 region.
Space Launch Complex 4E
Space Launch Complex 4 East has sent 261 rockets into orbit since 1963. Today it's SpaceX's workhorse pad on the Central Coast.
Space Launch Complex 2W
Once home to 261 Delta and Thor missions, Space Launch Complex 2W now serves as Firefly Aerospace's West Coast gateway to orbit.
Space Launch Complex 3E
Space Launch Complex 3E has served Vandenberg for six decades, evolving from early-warning satellite launches to Atlas V missions and soon Vulcan Centaur.
Space Launch Complex 6
From cancelled Cold War projects to Delta IV and now SpaceX, Space Launch Complex 6 has waited decades to fulfill its orbital promise.
Space Launch Complex 8
Once the California Spaceport's flagship pad, SLC-8 now serves Northrop Grumman's Minotaur family, launching national security and experimental payloads southward over the Pacific.