Sector Jacksonville Reserve lends support to the U.S. Space Program Story by Lt. Cmdr. Jennifer Di Nino, Sector Jacksonville The Coast Guard provides a vital presence at sea for space launches that take place from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In efforts with the Space Force’s Space Launch Delta 45, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and commercial launch providers, the Coast Guard ensures maritime safety and security for every space launch. Coast Guard support to space operations encompass a variety of mission sets including regulation of maritime support vessels, oversight of pollution/hazard response, search and rescue, anti-terrorism and force protection, and the establishment and enforcement of limited access areas during launches and recovery to protect mariners and boaters from potentially hazardous conditions. It is important for the Coast Guard to act to ensure the marine transportation system, and its mariners, are protected while also enabling a clear maritime range for successful launch and recovery operations. Each launch is unique, and Sector Jacksonville applies a flexible, risk-based approach to employing resources and personnel based on a variety of factors like the payload, pollution/hazards present, time of day, expected maritime traffic or concurrent events, etc. For example, a NASA astronaut- manned launch on a weekend with increased traffic and spectators is likely to have greater risk than a routine, weekday commercial satellite launch. For the first time since the beginning of the U.S. Space Program, government, military, and A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft lifts off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on May 30. Photo courtesy of NASA/Tony Gray and Tim Powers. 10 RESERVIST � Issue 4 • 2021 commercial space providers are expected to exceed 50 launch operations a year, which now include booster recovery to drone ships at sea, crewed astronaut launches, and space tourism. This mission is expected to continue to grow over the next few years and Sector Jacksonville’s role in space operations, Operation Solar Guardian, is predicted to support 100 launches by 2025. In fiscal year 2021 (FY21), there was a 200% increase in launches that occurred in FY19. The schedule alone can be tricky. Space launches are often re- scheduled or “scrubbed” on short notice, creating a 1 in 3 probability of a launch actually occurring when scheduled. The Coast Guard is scheduled to support approximately 150 launch opportunities in a given year. For example, in FY21, there were 34 launches with 96 scrubbed launches—nearly all of which required deployment of watch standers and assets prior to scrub. In addition to the myriad Coast operations Guard space responsibilities and enforceable authorities, for each launch, the Coast Guard provides a watch stander at the Launch Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and a second watch stander at the Morrell Operations Center (MOC). These watch standers are integrated into joint Department of Defense and commercial entity incident management and operational response. Personnel in both these watch stander positions must complete requisite PQS and be fully qualified for the position. A typical watch lasts four or more hours and can vary in length due to a variety of factors including weather, scrubs, window opportunity for launch, etc. With 150 launch opportunities and active duty personnel from local units (Sector Jacksonville, Marine Safety Detachment Port Canaveral, and Station Canaveral) engaged in other space support roles and functions, Sector Jacksonville created a candidate pool of reservists who have the flexibility to augment support to space operations and mitigate the gap in resources. Reserve support is not new to the U.S. Space Program. Coast Guard reservists supported NASA during its space shuttle days and currently, Space Launch Delta 45, reimburses the Coast Guard for one full-time equivalent (FTE) chief petty officer, a position typically filled by a reservist on one-year active duty orders.
