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☆ Live Updates: SpaceX Prepares Again to Launch Starship Rocket
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( The New York Times | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +5 min

PinnedSpaceX’s first attempt on Monday to launch Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built, was called off. During a livestream for a different SpaceX launch on Wednesday, the company noted that another Starship postponement was possible. Credit... Patrick T. Fallon/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesWhy didn’t Starship launch on Monday? Splashdown Near Hawaii Launch SpaceX Starbase Boca Chica, TexasStarship is designed to be entirely reusable. About eight minutes after the launch on Thursday, the Super Heavy booster will splash into the Gulf of Mexico.

NASA chief Bill Nelson tweeted: "Congrats to @SpaceX on Starship’s first integrated flight test! Looking forward to all that SpaceX learns, to the next flight test — and beyond." Musk, the founder, chief executive and chief engineer of SpaceX, said on Twitter that the next Starship test launch would be "in a few months." "Congrats @SpaceX team on an exciting test launch of Starship! Learned a lot for next test launch in a few months," he tweeted.

“As if the flight test was not exciting enough, Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly before stage separation,” SpaceX tweeted. The massive Super Heavy rocket booster, which houses 33 engines, lifted off and sent a massive boom across the coastal landscape as it fired to life. NASA administrator Bill Nelson took to Twitter to share his congratulations on the flight test. Looking forward to all that SpaceX learns, to the next flight test —and beyond.”The test flight comes after years of explosive tests, regulatory hurdles and public hyping from Musk. SpaceX's Starship lifted off for the uncrewed test flight in Boca Chica, Texas.

☆ Investing in Space special report: Starship succeeds, in spite of failure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Michael Sheetz | In Michaeljsheetz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

CNBC's Investing in Space newsletter offers a view into the business of space exploration and privatization, delivered straight to your inbox. As I sprinted for a flight in the Dallas airport near midnight last night, I didn't actually think SpaceX was going to light up Starship's engines this morning. And even with the Super Heavy booster successfully ignited, I still didn't think the rocket would get off the ground. Michael Sheetz is CNBC's space reporter – send tips, talent moves and more to michael.sheetz@nbcuni.com. Listen to CNBC's "Manifest Space" podcast, hosted by Morgan Brennan, wherever you find podcasts.

REUTERS/Go NakamuraBOCA CHICA, Texas, April 20 (Reuters) - Elon Musk's SpaceX aimed on Thursday to launch the company's next-generation Starship spacecraft atop its powerful Super Heavy rocket for the first time, on a highly anticipated but brief uncrewed test flight from the Gulf Coast of Texas. A successful flight would instantly rank the Starship system as the most powerful launch vehicle on Earth. In February, SpaceX conducted a test-firing of the Super Heavy, igniting 31 of its 33 engines for roughly 10 seconds with the rocket bolted in place vertically atop a platform. The Federal Aviation Administration last Friday granted a license for the first test flight of the fully stacked rocket system, clearing a final regulatory hurdle for the long-awaited launch. After separating from the Starship, the Super Heavy booster is expected to execute the beginnings of a controlled return flight before plunging into the Gulf.

Musk founded SpaceX with the goal of making spaceflight cheap enough to establish a permanent human settlement on Mars. Starship rocket is shown here minutes from its first launch window. A hush fell over the control room at SpaceX's facilities, where Musk himself was watching, until the tumbling rocket exploded in a fireball. The biggest concern for Musk would be if Starship "fireballed" and melted the launch pad, he said during a Twitter Spaces session on Sunday. Musk previously said that SpaceX is building multiple Starship rockets to launch this year.

☆ Watch all 5 times SpaceX's Starship rocket exploded in a giant fireball
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Grace Eliza Goodwin | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

SpaceX's Starship rocket exploded above Texas on its first attempted orbital launch. The space exploration company launched Starship from its base in Boca Chica, Texas. The Starship blasted off from Texas this morning, but exploded less than 3 minutes later. Here's the first one:In that first test flight, on December 9, 2020, a Starship prototype called Starship serial no. 8, or SN8, soared about 7 miles above SpaceX's Texas facilities.

The pad and surrounding area were cordoned off well in advance of the test, SpaceX said. [1/7] SpaceX's next-generation Starship spacecraft, atop its powerful Super Heavy rocket, explodes after its launch from the company's Boca Chica launchpad on a brief uncrewed test flight near Brownsville, Texas, U.S., April 20, 2023. "Congrats @SpaceX team on an exciting test launch of Starship! Learned a lot for next test launch," he tweeted. Still even a textbook test flight would have by design ended with crash landings of both portions of the spacecraft at sea.

REUTERS/Joe SkipperLOS ANGELES, April 20 (Reuters) - The spectacular explosion of SpaceX's new Starship rocket minutes after it soared off its launch pad on a first flight test is the latest vivid illustration of a "successful failure" business formula that serves Elon Musk's company well, experts said on Thursday. PRACTICE MAKES PERFECTAt least two experts in aerospace engineering and planetary science who spoke with Reuters agreed that the test flight delivered benefits. "This is a classical SpaceX successful failure," said Garrett Reisman, an astronautical engineering professor at the University of Southern California who is a former NASA astronaut and is also a senior adviser to SpaceX. Reisman called the Starship test flight a hallmark of a SpaceX strategy that sets Musk's company apart from traditional aerospace companies and even NASA by "this embracing of failure when the consequences of failure are low." She said the risks of a single flight test were small in comparison to the ambitious gains at stake.

☆ Elon Musk joked that if aliens came to earth he would get the most-liked tweet of all time, and that he's 'very familiar with space stuff'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk spoke to Fox News' Tucker Carlson on Tuesday about extraterrestrial life. The SpaceX CEO said "if anyone would know about aliens on Earth it would probably be me." "I think if anyone would know about aliens on Earth it would probably be me," Musk said in the interview. As Musk met with Twitter staff last June, Insider reported that Musk also said he hadn't seen any evidence of aliens as he discussed the possibility of extra-terrestrial life. The billionaire told Carlson he does hope that there is alien life in the universe, and that any aliens are peaceful.

☆ SpaceX readies for another attempt to launch Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The Starship spacecraft, which stands at 164 feet (50 meters) tall, rides atop the rocket. The Starship rocket sits on the SpaceX Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, on April 15, 2023. In the lead-up to the first launch of the company’s Falcon Heavy rocket, which held the title of most powerful rocket before NASA’s Space Launch System took flight last year, Musk foresaw only a 50-50 chance of success. “People (came) from all around the world to see what will either be a great rocket launch or the best fireworks display they’ve ever seen,” Musk told CNN at the time. The inaugural Falcon Heavy launch in 2018 was ultimately successful.

SpaceX plans to launch its new Starship mega-rocket to orbit on Thursday, after a frozen valve stopped the first attempt. If Starship succeeds, it'll be the tallest, most powerful, and only fully reusable rocket to ever fly. SpaceX plans to attempt the launch and see what happens on Thursday, during a launch window from 8:28 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Central Time. SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk, who estimates a 50-50 chance of success on Starship's first orbital launch. SpaceX/Handout via Reuters"A pressurant valve appears to be frozen, so unless it starts operating soon, no launch today," Musk tweeted.

BOCA CHICA, Texas, April 17 (Reuters) - Elon Musk's SpaceX called off the highly anticipated debut launch of its newly-combined Starship cruise vessel and Super Heavy rocket in the final minutes of countdown due to a frozen valve, delaying the uncrewed test flight for at least two days. But the California-based space company announced in a live webcast that it was scrubbing the planned 90-minute flight into space for a minimum of 48 hours, citing a frozen pressurization valve in the lower-stage rocket booster. A successful debut flight would also instantly rank the Starship system as the most powerful launch vehicle on Earth. But neither stage would be recovered for the expendable first test flight to space. After separating from the Starship, the Super Heavy booster is expected to execute the beginnings of a controlled return flight before plunging into the Gulf of Mexico.

REUTERS/Gene BlevinsBOCA CHICA, Texas, April 17 (Reuters) - Elon Musk's SpaceX made final preparations early on Monday to launch its powerful new Starship rocket system to space for the first time, on a brief but highly anticipated uncrewed test flight from the Gulf Coast of Texas. But neither stage will be recovered for the expendable first test flight to space, expected to last no more than 90 minutes. The Federal Aviation Administration just last Friday granted a license for what would be the first test flight of the fully stacked rocket system, clearing a final regulatory hurdle for the long-awaited launch. As designed, the Starship rocket is nearly two times more powerful than NASA's own Space Launch System (SLS), which made its debut uncrewed flight to orbit in November, sending a NASA cruise vessel called Orion on a 10-day voyage around the moon and back. Reporting by Joe Skipper in Boca Chica, Texas, and Joey Roulette in Denver; Writing and additional reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Editing by Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ SpaceX gets US regulatory green light for debut Starship flight to space
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Joey Roulette | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, April 14 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Friday granted a long-awaited license allowing Elon Musk's SpaceX to launch its Starship rocket to orbit for the first time, clearing the way for a test flight crucial to the company's goals in space. "After a comprehensive license evaluation process, the FAA determined SpaceX met all safety, environmental, policy, payload, airspace integration and financial responsibility requirements," the FAA said in a statement on Friday, adding that the license is valid for five years. The launch, from SpaceX's Starbase rocket facilities in Boca Chica, Texas, is slated for Monday April 17, the company affirmed on Twitter. Regulatory notices filed earlier on Friday indicate liftoff could occur anytime from 5:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Central time. Reporting by Joey Roulette; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Watch SpaceX launch Starship, the tallest and most powerful rocket ever built, on its first orbital flight as soon as Monday
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Marianne Guenot | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

SpaceX plans to launch Starship, its flagship mega-rocket, to orbit for the first time as soon as Monday. If Starship succeeds, it'll be the tallest, most powerful, and only fully reusable rocket ever flown. Watch the launch attempt live in the broadcast below. Starship is the rocket on which SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk is hinging his biggest aspirations — including building and populating a human settlement on Mars. Shortly after the FAA granted its license, SpaceX announced it would attempt a launch as soon as Monday, with a launch window from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. Central Time.

☆ Elon Musk's mom says she has slept on 'mattresses or blankets on the floor' when she visits her billionaire son
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Sarah Jackson | Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Maye Musk said she has slept on blankets on the floor when visiting her son, Elon Musk. In the past, she has said she's slept in the garage at his house near SpaceX's launch site. Musk has said he lives in a $45,000 converted two-bedroom house in Texas, and also couch hops. On Tuesday, she said on Twitter that she has "many memories of sleeping on mattresses or blankets on the floor, on couches, or a bed in the garage" when she visits her son. Elon's mother made the comment in response to a tweet in which the billionaire said he'd "slept on a friend's couch last weekend."

☆ Musk says SpaceX Starship rocket launch slipping to later in April
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, April 10 (Reuters) - A key SpaceX Starship Super Heavy rocket launch test now is likely to take place later this month rather than sometime this week, the space company's CEO Elon Musk said on Monday. The rocket is scheduled to lift off from SpaceX's Starbase facilities at Boca Chica in South Texas in the first launch of the company's fully stacked 394-foot (120-meter) tall Starship rocket system. "Starship launch trending towards near the end of third week of April," Musk wrote on Twitter a day after stating that it was ready for launch and "awaiting regulatory approval." Musk said last week Starship would be ready to launch this week. The Starship rocket system consists of a Starship rocket sitting atop a "Super Heavy" first stage booster with 33 rocket engines.

☆ Tesla has only installed 3,000 Solar Roof systems in the U.S., far below forecast, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Tesla vehicles parked outside a home with a Tesla Solar Roof on Weems Street in Boca Chica Village, Texas, U.S., on Monday, June 21, 2021. Tesla has only installed 3,000 of its Solar Roof systems in the U.S. since touting the technology seven years ago, according to new research from Wood Mackenzie. That installation rate falls well shy of Tesla's guidance and ambitions for what it previously called its "solar glass" roof tiles. Average weekly Tesla Solar Roof installations reached just 21 in 2022, Wood Mackenzie said. A group of Tesla shareholders eventually sued Tesla and Musk over the deal.

☆ Texans sound off against Elon Musk's 'horrifying' plans for dumping The Boring Company wastewater into Colorado River
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Boring Company is facing criticism from Texans over its plans to dump treated wastewater. One resident said about 400 people showed up at the public meeting on The Boring Company's plans. "The thought of this happening is horrifying," Erin, who runs an organic farm near the Boring Company facility, told Fox News. The Boring Company. A spokesperson for The Boring Company did not respond to a request for comment from Insider.

☆ 4 small business owners say a low-cost advertising strategy called 'comarketing' has helped them save time and money, and build more authentic campaigns
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Erica Sweeney | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

This might include cobranded content marketing campaigns, collaborative social media posts, event or content sponsorships, or affiliate marketing. Comarketing offers many benefits to small businessesComarketing can help small businesses save money, stretch their marketing budgets, build a stronger brand identity, and grow customer awareness. Connect with like-minded small businessesAlignment is crucial when choosing other small businesses to partner with, Smith said. When working with other businesses on social media marketing, Boone said everyone agrees on a timeframe. She and Merrell do this by sharing similar topics across their brands' social media channels, but slightly tweaking the messaging to appeal to each audience.

☆ Why SpaceX's Starship mega-rocket looks unlike anything the company has ever built before
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Rupendra Brahambhatt | Jessica Orwig | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Not only is Starship the world's largest, most powerful rocket, it also looks unlike anything SpaceX has ever built. Veronica G. Cardenas/ReutersThis silver-black color scheme is a vast change from SpaceX's white Falcon 9 rockets or NASA's orange and white Space Launch System. SpaceX's silver rocket made of steelSpaceX's Starship rocket is made of stainless steel. SpaceX's black-studded Starship spacecraftStarship is covered on one side with black tiles to help protect it upon atmospheric re-entry. SPACEXSpaceX wouldn't comment on whether, or not, that's the reasoning for their silver Starship rocket.

☆ Elon Musk hints Starship rocket may explode on first orbital launch, predicting 50% chance of success and 'guaranteeing excitement'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Marianne Guenot | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

SpaceX is prepping for the first orbital launch of Starship, the cornerstone rocket for Elon Musk's Mars ambitions. Musk estimated 50% odds of success and hinted the rocket could blow up on the first orbital attempt. Other Starships are waiting in the wings and one of them will likely reach orbit this year, he said. Gene Blevins/Reuters; SPadre.comIf successful, the launch will prove the world's first fully reusable orbital rocket, setting the stage for SpaceX to revolutionize the orbital economy. That's a major money-saving measure, since SpaceX would not have to build a new upper stage for every rocket launch.

☆ Elon Musk is reportedly planning to build a town for Texas staff, complete with a swimming pool, private compound, and school
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Grace Kay | Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk is planning to build his own town for SpaceX and The Boring Company staff. While Musk has overseen all purchases, Kanye West and the billionaire's ex-girlfriend, Grimes, also discussed the idea last year, the Journal reported. The town will be outfitted with a pool, an outdoor sports area, and a gym in addition to the prefabricated homes, the Journal reported. Spokespeople for SpaceX and The Boring Company did not respond to a request for comment from Insider. Do you work for The Boring Company, SpaceX, or have insight to share?

☆ Elon Musk's Starlink satellites are ruining images from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, threatening future science
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is getting more satellites ruining its images, a new study found. Hubble images streaked with white lines show the impact of just one satellite flying through the telescope's field of view. The proportion of Hubble images that look like this is increasing as more satellites fill Earth's orbit, the study found. Hubble peers through a growing 'wall' between us and the universeThe Hubble Space Telescope in Earth's orbit. So far SpaceX has launched more than 3,000 Starlink satellites and plans to eventually maintain up to 42,000 satellites in orbit.

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