By Jason Pike
ST LAWRENCE, NL – When you think about the town of St Lawrence on the Burin Peninsula of Newfoundland space ports and rockets are not exactly what come to mind. A long tradition of mining, fishing and a proud tradition of soccer competition earning it the reputation as the soccer capital of Canada.
Now something new is on the horizon. More reminiscent of something you would hear on a science fiction movie or in Cape Canaveral. An Ontario based company has proposed to build a Spaceport in the town of St Lawrence.
Nordspace, launched in 2022 by CEO Rahul Goel, it touts itself as building the road to space in Canada. Goel told CBC News that Canada lacks an operational spaceport, unlike other G7 countries, and his company wants to build the first. The aerospace startup says it wants to create Canada’s first ever commercial spaceport.
Outport is a Space Port
St. Lawrence is an ideal launching point according to Nordspace. They approached the town 6 months ago and immediately prompted questions and concern from residents and was obviously met with a lot of skepticism because, let’s be honest, a Spaceport in Newfoundland in general would be a stretch but in St Lawrence?…population 1200.
So, yes,so it just came off as a little far-fetched and unbelievable. But as time has progressed it seemed to become more apparent that there might be more to this than originally thought. Some questions do remain unanswered, like noise, overall environmental impact and potential effects to the region’s fishery.
In a public forum held at the town recreation centre this past Saturday Rahul Goel gave a presentation detailing what the project entails and thoroughly answered any questions that were put forward by the townspeople.
Launch sites for small rockets
Nordspace plans to build two launch pads in St. Lawrence according to the town— one at Deep Cove and another including a tracking and communications centre along Lighthouse Road. Goel said $5 million in private investment has been earmarked for an initial infrastructure phase, which involves concrete pads, support infrastructure and hangars. He estimated construction likely wouldn’t take more than two years, adding the company has met with the provincial government to explore where collaboration could be possible.
Rockets launched from St. Lawrence wouldn’t carry humans. Instead the purpose is to carry payloads or small satellites into low earth orbit (LEOS)— between 500 and 1,000 kilometres into space. The same type of satellites used for GPS navigation systems.
The rockets are 16 metres long, about eight times smaller than rockets used by SpaceX, and are created using 3D printed metal. Goel said the company is also exploring the usage of sustainable fuel ahead of its first launch later this year and plans to develop commercial business starting in 2027 or 2028.
They settled on St. Lawrence because it’s “perfectly positioned in terms of achieving the right orbital inclinations,” said Goel.
After the seminar concluded it seemed like the townspeople were more convinced and skepticism was fading and that this could be a real likelihood and something positive for the town so in saying that I guess the sky really is the limit for Nord space in the town of St Lawrence
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, January 14, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ — At 4:25 PM EST on Monday January 6th, 2025, NordSpace successfully tested its fully integrated sub-orbital rocket, Taiga, marking a significant step forward in preparation for Canada’s first commercial space launch.
