In California, Rocket Launches, Sonic Booms, and Endangered Species

Hi, everyone,

I’m Hannah Bowlus, a new Inkstick reporting fellow from Los Angeles. My first story took me up the coast to Vandenberg Space Force Base in Lompoc, where SpaceX commercial and military launches have troubled locals and environmental groups. Despite their ongoing objections and official calls for more robust environmental analyses and mitigation efforts from the California Coastal Commission, the Air Force has approved an increase to 100 launches a year, a sharp escalation for a base that has averaged a handful of launches per year for the past two decades.

The quick acceleration of SpaceX operations on an otherwise low-frequency base has already proven dangerous for wildlife. Not only is the central coast of California an important migratory junction — it’s also the site of rich, productive marine sanctuaries and rookeries.

Sonic booms from SpaceX launches and landings have been heard across three southern California counties. These booms regularly disturb protected species. The severity of these disturbances and who is actually responsible are the questions that animated much of my research for this story. I spoke to volunteers at the Carpinteria harbor seal rookery 70 miles south of Vandenberg.

After a Falcon 9 sonic boom in January, the seals scattered. Norton saw a female seal wet with blood. Repeated disturbances can cause miscarriages and premature births. “They’re far more vulnerable to stress than the average person imagines,” Mailheau said. “This is a sentinel species.” Their health reflects the health of their habitat, and their signals should sound an alarm, according to Mailheau, who said that to think they aren’t harmed is “pure arrogance.”

Mailheau has been a seal watcher for 10 years. Since 2019, the seals at the rookery have plummeted. Historical highs number over 400. Today, she’s grateful for a high count of 120. Where have they gone? Mailheau said we just don’t know.

The vast majority of harbor seals spend their whole lives at their natal site. Leaving goes against a powerful instinct. Some of them are strong enough to make it to the Channel Islands, Mailheau thinks, but the journey is incredibly taxing. “Do they just die?” Mailheau said. “Or do they keep swimming until they can’t swim any longer?”

I mentioned Elon Musk just once in this article. No doubt he casts a long shadow, but he’s not the first defense contractor to use the central coast as a test site. Nor is SpaceX the first company to lease launch pads from Vandenberg.

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In my next story for Inkstick, I’ll dig into Vandenberg’s history and how this space age revival is again, in the name of national security, endangering not just those of us in California, but the planet itself.

You can read my first story here and reach me with comments or tips at [email protected] and hbowlus.08 on Signal.

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