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SpaceX puts 60 Starlink satellites in orbit with first rocket launch of the year [photos]
SpaceX has kicked off a record-breaking 2020 launch manifest with a spectacular combination of Starlink satellites and a Falcon 9 rocket, the first of perhaps two dozen such launches planned this year alone.
Falcon 9 booster B1049 supported the mission, becoming the second SpaceX rocket ever to complete four launches and landings after B1048 did it first in November 2019. Starlink-2’s Falcon 9 booster is now safely aboard drone ship Of Course I Still Love You and beginning the 600 km (375 mi) journey back to Port Canaveral, Florida, where it will likely be processed and turned around for a fifth launch in the near future.
Teslarati photographer Richard Angle was on-site to capture the event and caught a number of spectacular photos of SpaceX’s Starlink-2 launch, ranging from an excellent visualization of the rocket’s trajectory to a close-up view highlighting the fury of Falcon 9’s nine Merlin 1D engines seconds after liftoff.
Falcon 9 Block 5 boosters are loaded with some 520 metric tons (1.2 million lb) of liquid oxygen, refined kerosene (RP-1), helium, and nitrogen. At full throttle, the nine Merlin 1D engines that power each Falcon booster can produce more than 7600 kN (1.7 million lbf) of thrust, equivalent to more than 60 737 passenger jets chained together. At the same time, every one of those nine Merlin 1D engines likely consumes more than 270 kg (600 lb) of liquid oxygen and kerosene every second, with all nine engines combining to burn the equivalent of one and a half Tesla Model 3s worth of propellant per second.
A step further, the 1.5 Teslas of propellant Falcon 9 boosters burn each second exits the nozzles of their nine Merlin 1D engines traveling almost 3 kilometers per second (1.9 miles per second) – more than 35 times faster than the fastest hurricane windspeeds every recorded. In simple terms, the exhausts of even tiny orbital-class rockets create a spectacularly violent and unearthly environment in the seconds immediately following liftoff, exaggerated by the ground and pad hardware reflecting all that energy and fury.
And Falcon 9 (let alone Falcon Heavy) is no tiny rocket. While it’s still extremely difficult to get a good sense of scale while looking at launch photos, it’s safe to say that photos of Falcon 9’s nine Merlin 1D engines shortly after launch undeniably capture at least a small sense of the sheer heat, fury, and stress experienced by SpaceX’s orbital launch pads. One of the most obvious features are giant clouds backlit by the rocket’s own engines, produced as a side effect of the common use of water deluge systems to protect launch pads and keep launch vehicles from damaging themselves.
In the handful seconds the rocket is near the pad, swimming pools worth of water are almost instantaneously vaporized by into superheated steam clouds by its exhaust and then violently buffeted by the shockwaves and vibrations they produce. In simple terms, the sound alone – let alone the heat or debris kicked up by the exhaust – would likely kill or at least severely injure an unprotected human observer standing nearby, while the heat would probably incinerate immediate bystanders.
Regardless of the pedantry of observing rocket launches up close and really personal, January 6th’s Starlink launch is the first of as many as 36 launches SpaceX has planned in 2020 – some two dozen of which could end up being dedicated Starlink missions. SpaceX’s next two Starlink launches – Starlink-3 and -4 – are already scheduled to lift off as early as later this month.
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Tesla ramps production of its ‘new’ models at Giga Texas
The vehicles are being built at Tesla Gigafactory Texas in Austin, and there are plenty of units being built at the factory, based on a recent flyover by drone operator and plant observer Joe Tegtmeyer.
Tesla is ramping up production of its ‘new’ Model Y Standard at Gigafactory Texas just over a week after it first announced the vehicle on October 7.
Earlier this month, Tesla launched the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y “Standard,” their release of what it calls its affordable models. They are priced under $40,000, and although there was some noise surrounding the skepticism that they’re actually “affordable,” it appears things have been moving in the right direction.
The vehicles are being built at Tesla Gigafactory Texas in Austin, and there are plenty of units being built at the factory, based on a recent flyover by drone operator and plant observer Joe Tegtmeyer:
News: the @Tesla Model Y Standard production is well underway at Giga Texas today!
This consistent with what I was told to expect during the unveiling day last week!
The outbound lot had many Premium Model Y’s and @cybertruck too!
More coming soon! pic.twitter.com/WU489QKPLB
— Joe Tegtmeyer 🚀 🤠🛸😎 (@JoeTegtmeyer) October 16, 2025
The new Standard Tesla models are technically the company’s response to losing the $7,500 EV tax credit, which significantly impacts any company manufacturing electric vehicles.
However, it seems the loss of the credit is impacting others much more than it is Tesla.
As General Motors and Ford are scaling back their EV efforts because it is beginning to hurt their checkbooks, Tesla is moving forward with its roadmap to catalyze annual growth from a delivery perspective. While GM, Ford, and Stellantis are all known for their vehicles, Tesla is known for its prowess as a car company, an AI company, and a Robotics entity.
Elon Musk was right all along about Tesla’s rivals and EV subsidies
Tesla should have other vehicles coming in the next few years, especially as the Cybercab is evidently moving along with its preliminary processes, like crash testing and overall operational assessment.
It has been spotted at the Fremont Factory several times over the past couple of weeks, hinting that the vehicle could begin production sometime next year.
Tesla could be greatly impacted in one of its strongest markets as the government is ready to eliminate a main subsidy for electric vehicles over the next two years.
In Norway, EV concentrations are among the strongest in the world, with over 98 percent of all new cars sold in September being electric powertrains. This has been a long-standing trend in the Nordic region, as countries like Iceland and Sweden are also highly inclined to buy EVs.
However, the Norwegian government is ready to abandon a subsidy program it has in place, as it has effectively achieved what it set out to do: turn consumers to sustainability.
This week, Norway’s Finance Minister, Jens Stoltenberg, said it is time to consider phasing out the benefits that are given to those consumers who choose to buy an EV.
Stoltenberg said this week (via Reuters):
“We have had a goal that all new passenger cars should be electric by 2025, and … we can say that the goal has been achieved. Therefore, the time is ripe to phase out the benefits.”
EV subsidies in Norway include reduced value-added tax (VAT) on cheaper models, lower road and toll fees, and even free parking in some areas.
The government also launched programs that would reduce taxes for companies and fleets. Individuals are also exempt from the annual circulation tax and fuel-related taxes.
In 2026, changes will already be made. Norway will lower its EV tax exemption to any vehicle priced at over 300,000 crowns ($29,789.40), down from the current 500,000, which equates to about $49,500.
This would eliminate each of the Tesla Model Y’s trim levels from tax exemption status. In 2027, the VAT exemptions will be completely removed. Not a single EV on the market will be able to help owners escape from tax-exempt status.
There is some pushback on the potential loss of subsidies and benefits, and some groups believe that the loss of the programs will regress the progress EVs have made.
Christina Bu, head of the Norwegian EV Association, said:
“I worry that sudden and major changes will make more people choose fossil-fuel cars again, and I think everyone agrees that we don’t want to go back there.”
With the loss of the $7,500 Electric Vehicle Tax Credit, it looks as if Tesla CEO Elon Musk was right all along.
As the tax credit’s loss starts to take effect, car companies that have long relied on the $7,500 credit to create sales for themselves are starting to adjust their strategies for sales and their overall transition to electrification.
On Tuesday, General Motors announced it would include a $1.6 billion charge in its upcoming quarterly earnings results from its EV investments.
Ford said in late September that it expects demand for its EVs to be cut in half. Stellantis is abandoning its plan to have only EVs being produced in Europe by 2030, and Chrysler, a brand under the Stellantis umbrella, is bailing on lofty EV sales targets here in the U.S.
How Tesla could benefit from the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ that axes EV subsidies
The tax credit and EV subsidies have achieved what many of us believed they were doing: masking car companies from the truth about their EV demand. Simply put, their products are not priced attractively enough for what they offer, and there is no true advantage to buying EVs developed by legacy companies.
These tax credits have helped companies simply compete with Tesla, nothing more and nothing less. Without them, their products likely would not have done as well as they have. That’s why these companies are now suddenly backtracking.
It’s something Elon Musk has said all along.
Back in January, during the Q4 and Full Year 2024 Earnings Call, Musk said:
“I think it would be devastating for our competitors and for Tesla slightly. But, long term, it probably actually helps Tesla, that would be my guess.”
In July of last year, Musk said on X:
“Take away all the subsidies. It will only help Tesla.”
Take away the subsidies. It will only help Tesla.
Also, remove subsidies from all industries!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 16, 2024
Over the past few years, Tesla has started to lose its market share in the U.S., mostly because more companies have entered the EV manufacturing market and more models are being offered.
Nobody has been able to make a sizeable dent in what Tesla has done, and although its market share has gotten smaller, it still holds nearly half of all EV sales in the U.S.
Tesla’s EV Market Share in the U.S. By Year
-
- 2020 – 79%
- 2021 – 72%
- 2022 – 62%
- 2023 – 55%
- 2024 – 49%
As others are adjusting to what they believe will be tempered demand for their EVs, Tesla has just reported its strongest quarter in company history, with just shy of half a million deliveries.
Will Tesla thrive without the EV tax credit? Five reasons why they might
Although Tesla benefited from the EV tax credit, particularly last quarter, some believe it will have a small impact since it has been lost. The company has many other focuses, with its main priority appearing to be autonomy and AI.
One thing is for sure: Musk was right.
Tesla ramps production of its ‘new’ models at Giga Texas
Tesla set to be impacted greatly in one of its strongest markets
Elon Musk was right all along about Tesla’s rivals and EV subsidies
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