China has kicked off construction on a new spaceport on the southern island of Hainan that will also include a theme park, according to a story on Chinaview.com. Officials expect to complete the new launch center in about five years. They will use the facility to launch geostationary and polar-orbit satellites as well as deep-space probes. The space theme park will feature zero gravity rides and other attractions.

Florida Today questions the feasibility of a commercial spaceport at Kennedy Space Center in the wake of public hearings where residents spoke against its possible location in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. The newspaper wonders whether the project is financially feasible and whether it would have a detrimental impact on tourism and the environment. “[Residents] also offered a good suggestion: Consider building the complex at abandoned launch sites at […]