

News
SpaceX talks results of ‘DarkSat’ coating aimed at reducing brightness of Starlink satellites
SpaceX successfully launched another batch of Starlink satellites into space on March 18, the fourth such launch this year. That brings the total number of internet-beaming satellites to 362, which includes two experimental ones. But ever since the initial batch got off the ground, astronomers and skywatchers have voiced concerns over the apparent brightness of the satellites.
That’s because the satellites appear in the night sky as a train of bright white dots marching across the sky. The sight is alarming to scientists who depend on clear skies in order to peer deep into space. Their concern is this: if the satellites are already interfering with telescope observations, what’s going to happen when there are 42,000 in orbit?
Initially, SpaceX has said its Starlink network will consist of 1,584 satellites, all operating in low Earth orbit. But the company has approval from the Federal Communications Commission for 12,000 satellites and could seek permission to launch 30,000 more. And they’re not the only company with space internet ambitions; OneWeb and Amazon have similar constellations planned.
To help assuage their concerns, SpaceX decided to test out an experimental coating that would reduce the brightness of its satellites. SpaceX tested it out on a previous launch, on one individual satellite, aptly named “DarkSat”.
During the live broadcast of the most recent Starlink mission, SpaceX representatives said that the experiment was somewhat successful and that the coating did help to reduce the satellite’s brightness. But SpaceX wanted to try other means to see which technique was the more effective.
“Preliminary results show a notable reduction,” said Jessica Anderson, one of the hosts of the webcast. But just how effective it is remains to be seen.
Astronomers in Chile measured the DarkSat’s brightness and compared it to the rest of the Starlink satellites. The findings show that the DarkSat was about 55% dimmer, which is good news for certain telescopes. Other telescopes, like the upcoming Vera Rubin Observatory will need the brightness reduced even further as the sensitive optics would be greatly affected by the satellites zooming across the sky.
Astronomers ran computer simulations that showed that the Starlink satellites would not only show up as pronounced streaks across images, but would saturate the pixels in the detectors, causing other ghost-like artifacts to appear. Observatories like the Vera Rubin would need the satellites to be at least 10-20% darker to mitigate their effects.
During the broadcast, Anderson also explained that the company was looking into other ideas that could reduce the satellites’ reflectivity even further.
One of those other ideas is a sunshade. SpaceX didn’t divulge too many details, other than the fact the technology would be used on a future mission and that it would deploy like a patio umbrella from the satellite. How that compares to the coating on the DarkSat remains to be seen.
News
Tesla makes crazy leasing move to spur short-term demand in the U.S.

Tesla has made a crazy move with its leasing terms in the United States to spur demand in the short term, as Q4 is moving along quickly.
The move is one that is pretty crazy in terms of the lease price, as one of the deals shows a drop of nearly one-quarter of the previous pricing. These deals are obviously being started to really drive demand over the next week and a half.
Tesla has offered new leasing terms on the Model 3, Model Y, and Cybertruck, cutting lease prices by 23 percent for the Model 3, 15 percent for the Model Y, and 7 percent for the Cybertruck.
New prices on these leases are as follows:
- Tesla Model 3: $329/mo, down from $429 — 23 percent discount
- Tesla Model Y: $449/mo, down from $529 — 15 percent discount
- Tesla Cybertruck: $699/mo, down from $749 — 7 percent discount
The lease terms are $3,000 down, a 36-month lease term, and 10,000 miles per year. Tesla is also showing $0 down lease prices automatically on its website.
For the Model 3, these same terms with $0 down would be $419. The Model Y with $0 down would be $543 a month, and the Cybertruck would be $851 a month.
These terms are also for the entry-level configurations of each vehicle, so for the Model 3, it’s the Model 3 Standard. The Model Y price is for the Model Y Standard, and the Cybertruck is the All-Wheel-Drive.
Tesla launches two new affordable models with ‘Standard’ Model 3, Y offerings
Tesla shows on their website that these lease deals are incredibly short-term and will adjust accordingly on November 1.
Why Tesla is launching these deals for ten days is not necessarily known, but it seems as if the company might be testing demand, as lease deals for the latter half of Q4 could be in the works.
Tesla traditionally launches some pretty tasty deals at the end of each quarter, but this move is somewhat interesting simply because it is not even remotely long-term.
It will be a good test to see if people are more incentivized to wait for these deals now that the $7,500 tax credit has been removed.
News
Tesla Sweden faced with fresh strike from elevator company
Telecom and elevator service providers are the latest to join the widening labor blockade against the EV maker.

Tesla’s operations in Sweden are facing fresh pressure as multiple unions intensify their long-running dispute against the electric vehicle maker. Industrial groups IF Metall and Seko have announced new blockades affecting elevator maintenance and telecom services, escalating their ongoing conflict with Tesla Sweden.
Work stoppages expand to elevator maintenance
Starting October 29, elevator manufacturer Cibes Kalea Sverige will halt all service and maintenance work at Tesla’s facilities under a full blockade ordered by IF Metall. The union’s move targets elevator service visits, which are typically required four times a year in Sweden. Cibes Kalea employs around 70 workers across six sites in Sweden and provides both passenger and freight elevator systems to clients, including Tesla, as noted in a report from Dagens Arbete.
The industrial action follows months of escalating measures from IF Metall, which has aimed to pressure Tesla into signing a collective bargaining agreement. Since early September, the union has initiated several blockades across Tesla’s Swedish network, including work stoppages involving suppliers like Holtab and Linde Material Handling.
This was despite Sweden’s Mediation Institute throwing in the towel at the unions and Tesla’s conflict. “We have tried in every possible way to get the parties to come closer to each other in a way that allows this conflict to end. But now we have come to the end of the road and have realized that it is just as good to end the case,” Director General Irene Wennemo said.
Telecom workers join expanding blockade
In a separate escalation, Seko, another major Swedish union, announced a strike targeting Tesla’s telecommunications infrastructure. “We are now putting a notice on the telecom area and this means that when it comes to networks, fiber or telephony, for example, we will not help where Tesla needs either service, maintenance or new installation of these parts,” Seko chair Gabriella Lavecchia told Sveriges Radio.
Seko has already initiated blockades against Tesla’s postal service and charging stations. The union expects the telecom blockade to have even broader effects given Tesla’s reliance on connectivity for its charging and digital services. “There aren’t many companies in Sweden today that don’t need telephony, fiber, networks, and I would guess that Tesla needs it more than many others,” Lavecchia said.
With 12 strike notices issued in just a few weeks, the conflict shows no signs of easing as unions continue to coordinate pressure through multiple sectors.
News
Tesla shares rare glimpse of Giga Shanghai, posts bullish teaser for Model Y L deliveries
The video was shared by the electric vehicle maker on Chinese social media platform Weibo.

Tesla China has posted a rather optimistic teaser of Giga Shanghai and this quarter’s Model Y L deliveries. The video was shared by the electric vehicle maker on Chinese social media platform Weibo.
Giga Shanghai on full throttle
The recently shared Weibo video featured a rather rare glimpse of the exterior of Giga Shanghai, which, unlike Giga Texas, the Fremont Factory, and Giga Berlin, reportedly no longer allows drone flyovers. As noted by Tesla China in its Weibo post, Giga Shanghai has finished its vehicle shipping center, which allows the company to ship cars efficiently.
Tesla China posted a video of numerous Model Y vehicles being loaded onto car carrier trucks. And as could be seen in the video, a good number of the Model Ys being shipped from Giga Shanghai were Model Y L units, the all-electric crossover’s six-seat, extended wheelbase variant that only started deliveries last month.
Insurance registration reports
Tesla China does seem to be moving at full throttle this Q4 2025. Whisper numbers from industry watchers have suggested that the electric vehicle maker recorded 16,500 new vehicle registrations in the week of October 13-19. Considering that Tesla China typically focuses on exports during the first weeks of a quarter, the company’s numbers this Q4 could be quite impressive.
For context, Tesla China saw 5,020 new vehicle registrations in the week ending October 5 and 11,300 new vehicle registrations in the week ending October 12, 2025. The momentum of the Model Y L is also building up, with previous reports stating that the extended wheelbase, six-seat Model Y variant was able to help boost Tesla China’s wholesale numbers to 90,812 units in September, becoming the country’s fourth best-selling mid-to-large SUV in the process.
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