Florida Space IndustryStreet Economics® · The Florida space economy on a network and a lineage

Reference

ContentsHow to read this mapThe statutory spaceport systemThe launch coast and the Eastern RangeThe chain off the coastThe engine that changed hands twiceThe state's handThe state designates a research entityAnnounced, and designated: two different thingsNetwork position and what it does not meanHow to read each relationEvidence architecture, open items and sources
The pipeline

The state designates a research entity

The Space Florida board designated the Florida University Space Research Consortium on 7 November 2024 [SFCON]. The charter members are University of Florida, University of Central Florida and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. A memorandum of understanding with Kennedy Space Center was signed on 8 January 2025 [NASACON]. Florida Institute of Technology, University of South Florida, Florida State University and Florida International University follow [FITCON].

The board designated the consortium; it did not charter or fund it, and the map says designated rather than created. Space Florida and the center report it as the only university consortium in the country affiliated with a NASA center, and that claim is carried here as the authority’s own characterization rather than as an independent finding [SFCON] [NASACON].

NodePlaceHub regionRoleConfidence
Florida University Space Research ConsortiumExploration Park, Merritt Island, Brevard CountySpace Coastthe state's official space research entityHigh [SFCON] [UFCON] [NASACON] [FITCON]
University of FloridaGainesville, Alachua CountyNorth Central Floridacharter consortium memberHigh [UFCON] [SFCON] [FITCON]
University of Central FloridaOrlando, Orange CountyOrlandocharter consortium memberHigh [UCFCON] [UFCON] [NASACON]
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical UniversityDaytona Beach, Volusia CountyNorth Central Floridacharter consortium memberHigh [ERAUCON] [NASACON] [UFCON]
Florida Institute of TechnologyMelbourne, Brevard CountySpace Coastconsortium memberHigh [FITHOME] [FITCON] [WFIT]
University of South FloridaTampa, Hillsborough CountyTampa Bay and West Central Floridaconsortium memberHigh [FITCON]
Florida State UniversityTallahassee, Leon CountyPanhandle and the capitalconsortium memberHigh [FITCON]
Florida International UniversityMiami, Miami-Dade CountySouth Floridaconsortium memberHigh [FITCON]
C-STARS, Center for Science, Technology and Advanced Research in SpaceMelbourne, Brevard CountySpace Coastmulti university space manufacturing centerHigh [FITCON]
Florida Space InstituteOrlando, Orange CountyOrlandostate space research instituteHigh [FSIHOME] [WFSI] [UCFCON]
FAMU-FSU College of EngineeringTallahassee, Leon CountyPanhandle and the capitaljoint engineering collegeHigh [WFAMU]

Seven universities in seven cities connect through one node, which is why the consortium ranks second by betweenness on the full graph at 0.213. That is a statement about the shape of the graph, not about research output. On the industrial relations subgraph the consortium carries 0.000, because membership is not an industrial relation.

The lane is named universities and research because that is what it holds. It does not yet carry technical colleges, apprenticeships or workforce boards, and it is not named for a pipeline it does not yet map.

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