Rocket Launch Viewing Planner
The next launches from Florida in your time, and from your town: which way to look, and how high the rocket must climb before you can see it.
Next launches from Florida
The schedule loads here from Launch Library 2 (The Space Devs). If it does not, their schedule and NASA’s have it.
Orlando → Space Launch Complex 40
49 mi · look eastFrom Orlando the rocket is above your horizon once it has climbed 1,610 ft — 7 times a Falcon 9’s own height. Until then the curve of the Earth hides it, and trees and buildings hide it for longer.
- Distance
- 49 mi
- Look
- east (88°)
- Above your horizon at
- 1,610 ft
- Press Plan on a launch above to see whether it lifts off in daylight, at twilight or at night: night and twilight launches are the ones worth a drive.
- An estimate from geometry: an open horizon at sea level, no refraction. Trees, buildings and haze make the real height greater.
Pads, spots and towns from Wikidata; Playalinda’s launch rules from the National Park Service. Checked 2026-09-24.
Where to watch, nearest to SLC-40 first
Quick answer: the next Cape Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center launches are at the top, in your own time. The closest public view is Playalinda Beach, 2.8 mi (4.5 km) from pad 39A, and it is open for launches only between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. From Orlando, 49 mi (79 km) away, a rocket is above the horizon once it has climbed 1,610 ft (490 m): look east.
How to use it
The list at the top is the schedule for Florida’s pads, updated hourly from Launch Library 2 and shown in your time zone and in Eastern time. Press Plan on a launch to see whether it lifts off in daylight, at twilight or at night, and whether Playalinda Beach can be open for it. Then pick the town you will watch from, or use your location, for the distance to the pad, the direction to look and how high the rocket must climb before the curve of the Earth stops hiding it.
Where to watch a rocket launch
Visit Space Coast, the county’s tourism office, names these public spots. Distances are straight lines from each spot to the busiest pads: 39A at Kennedy Space Center and Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape.
| Spot | To pad 39A | To SLC-40 | Entry |
|---|---|---|---|
| Playalinda Beach | 2.8 mi (4.5 km) | 6.4 mi (10.3 km) | $25 per vehicle (7 days) |
| Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex | 7.5 mi (12.1 km) | 6.9 mi (11.1 km) | admission ticket |
| Space View Park | 12.2 mi (19.6 km) | 14.3 mi (23.0 km) | — |
| Jetty Park | 14.0 mi (22.5 km) | 10.8 mi (17.3 km) | a day pass sold by Port Canaveral |
| Westgate Cocoa Beach Pier | 16.6 mi (26.8 km) | 13.5 mi (21.7 km) | — |
| Sebastian Inlet State Park | 53.2 mi (85.6 km) | 49.8 mi (80.1 km) | a Florida State Parks entrance fee |
Playalinda is the one with rules. The National Park Service opens its Playalinda District for a launch only when it lifts off between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. in summer, or 6 p.m. in winter; the road from the gate to parking lot 1 closes 30 minutes before launch, and the beach at lot 1 is closed for a quarter of a mile south to the Kennedy Space Center boundary. When the lots fill, the park stops letting cars in. Entry is $25 per vehicle for seven days, and an America the Beautiful pass covers it.
How far away can you see a launch?
Far — it depends on how high the rocket has to be before it is above your horizon. That height is geometry: the farther away you are, the higher it must climb before the curve of the Earth stops hiding it. From Titusville, across the river, it is less than the rocket’s own height, so you see it leave the pad. From Tampa it is 1.9 miles (3.0 km), from Miami 4.8 miles (7.7 km), and from Atlanta 23 miles (37 km). By the edge of space, 100 km up, a rocket is on the open horizon of anyone within 697 mi (1,121 km).
| Watching from | Distance to SLC-40 | Look | Above your horizon at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Titusville | 15 mi (24 km) | east | from liftoff |
| Cocoa Beach | 16 mi (26 km) | north | from liftoff |
| Orlando | 49 mi (79 km) | east | 1,610 ft (490 m) |
| Daytona Beach | 52 mi (84 km) | south-southeast | 1,830 ft (560 m) |
| Tampa | 122 mi (197 km) | east-northeast | 1.9 miles (3.0 km) |
| Jacksonville | 137 mi (221 km) | south-southeast | 2.4 miles (3.8 km) |
| Miami | 194 mi (312 km) | north | 4.8 miles (7.7 km) |
| Key West | 286 mi (461 km) | north-northeast | 10 miles (17 km) |
| Savannah, GA | 243 mi (391 km) | south | 7.5 miles (12 km) |
| Atlanta, GA | 424 mi (682 km) | south-southeast | 23 miles (37 km) |
These are the best case: an open horizon at sea level, and no allowance for refraction. Trees, buildings, hills and haze all raise the real height, which is why a beach or a lake shore facing the Cape beats a back yard.
Daylight, twilight or night
A daylight launch far away is a bright point with a trail of smoke. A night launch is a flame you can follow across the sky. The one people drive for is a twilight launch, in the hour or so after sunset or before sunrise: the ground is dark, but the rocket climbs back into sunlight, and the lit exhaust can spread into the glowing shape people call a space jellyfish. The tool works out which a launch is from the sun’s position over the pad at liftoff, using NOAA’s solar equations.
Plan the trip
Not sure where the launches actually happen? Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral are not quite the same place, and neither are Port Canaveral and Cape Canaveral. For the rest of the trip: is Cape Canaveral worth visiting?, its beaches, and Cocoa Beach at night, for the evening after a launch.
FAQ
Where is the best place to watch a rocket launch?
For pads 39A and 39B, Playalinda Beach in Canaveral National Seashore, 2.8 mi (4.5 km) from 39A, when the launch falls inside its 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. window. For any launch, Space View Park in Titusville, Jetty Park at Port Canaveral and the Cocoa Beach Pier are all public and face the pads. The table above gives each spot’s distance to the two busiest pads.
Where can I watch a SpaceX launch?
SpaceX launches from Florida use pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center and Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape. Press Plan on the launch at the top of the tool: it switches to that launch’s pad and lists the viewing spots nearest to it.
Can you watch a rocket launch from Playalinda Beach?
Yes, when the launch is between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. in summer, or 6 p.m. in winter: outside those hours the National Park Service keeps the Playalinda District closed. The road from the gate closes 30 minutes before launch, and entry is $25 per vehicle.
Can you see a rocket launch from Orlando?
Often, yes. Orlando is 49 mi (79 km) from Space Launch Complex 40, and a rocket is above an open horizon there once it has climbed 1,610 ft (490 m). Look east, from somewhere without buildings or trees in the way; night and twilight launches are far easier to see.
Can you see a rocket launch from Tampa?
Tampa is 122 mi (197 km) from the Cape, so the rocket has to climb 1.9 miles (3.0 km) before it is above your horizon. After dark or at twilight it can be seen from Tampa Bay on a clear night; in daylight it is a small point with a trail, low in the east-northeast.
How far away can you see a rocket launch?
Hundreds of miles, at night or twilight. By the time a rocket is 100 km up it is above the open horizon of anyone within 697 mi (1,121 km) — Atlanta, 424 mi (682 km) away, sees it once it has passed 23 miles (37 km). What decides it is darkness and a clear view, not the distance alone.
Can you hear a rocket launch?
Close in, yes, and late: sound travels about 343 metres a second, so from Titusville, 15 mi (24 km) from SLC-40, the roar reaches you about 70 seconds after you see the rocket leave the pad.