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SpaceX returns intact fairing half on clawboat in post-launch surprise

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Despite a statement from SpaceX CEO Elon Musk that the Iridium-5 mission’s fairing recovery attempt had failed due to a twisted parafoil, Teslarati captured photos of clawboat Mr Steven arriving in the Port of San Pedro early Saturday morning with an apparently intact fairing half.

Not to be confused with the first successfully recovered fairing that returned to land in late February, this half is undoubtedly fresh from Iridium-5’s Friday morning launch. The $2.5 million, carbon composite aluminum fairing half recovered during SpaceX’s PAZ mission on February 22 is currently being stored and scrapped at SpaceX’s brand new port real estate – Berth 240, or the same location that was selected as the probable location for SpaceX’s first BFR manufacturing facility.

Compared to Musk’s previous comments during the first intact fairing recovery in late February, it would seem that Iridium-5’s fairing was all but doomed when it “impacted [the] water at high speed,” and the majority of fans appeared to have concluded as much. Following PAZ, Musk tweeted that the Mr Steven had “missed by a few hundred meters, but fairing landed intact in water” –  as an incredibly optimized and lightweight structure, a fairing half would likely have to land very gently to avoid breaking into pieces. That Mr Steven’s crew was able to bring the Iridium-5 half aboard all but guarantees that it was floating intact on the ocean surface after touching down.

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This does not necessarily contradict Musk’s diagnosis of a twisted parafoil, assuming he was referring to the lines that connect the fairing to the foil – paragliders frequently suffer tangles and twists in their lines, an event that typically warps the parafoil’s structure, thus lowering the amount of lift it can produce as a wing. This is an inevitable risk of what is basically a self-inflating wing, and failures of this sort are known to kill or injure paragliders at low altitudes and can also lead to uncontrolled spinning (although that is very unlikely to occur with a 1000kg payload).

A NASA experiment in the late 90s examined the use of a parafoil to enable gentle, guided landings of an orbital escape pod – the experiment was quite successful. (NASA)

Ultimately, GPS-guided parafoils have been done fairly successfully and many times over during the past two or so decades. For the most part,the problems preventing SpaceX from recovering fairings in Mr Steven’s net have been almost entirely solved: the fact that two fairing halves have been recovered intact after their last two Western launches confirm as much. SpaceX engineers have somehow found a way to enable a highly flexible, lightweight, and aerodynamically awkward lifting body to survive a journey from heights of 110+ km and speeds of more than 2250 meters per second.

SpaceX’s fairings may look unassuming dressed in their subtle soot and simple curved lines, but – as SpaceX has intoned in the past – if landing massive Falcon 9 boosters after launch is akin to “launching a pencil over the Empire State building and having it land on a shoebox on the other side…during a wind storm,” recovering the relatively minuscule and light fairings can be fairly compared to launching a paper bowl over two stacked Empire State Buildings in a tornado and catching it with one hand behind your back on the opposite side – all without ripping, folding, or denting it.

 

SpaceX is 99% of the way to successful and routine fairing recovery and reuse and the final 1% is all about testing and subtle refinement. Future fairing recovery attempts may even be streamed in real time on SpaceX’s webcasts, according to Musk.

Follow us for live updates, behind-the-scenes sneak peeks, and a sea of beautiful photos from our East and West coast photographers.

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Eric Ralph is Teslarati's senior spaceflight reporter and has been covering the industry in some capacity for almost half a decade, largely spurred in 2016 by a trip to Mexico to watch Elon Musk reveal SpaceX's plans for Mars in person. Aside from spreading interest and excitement about spaceflight far and wide, his primary goal is to cover humanity's ongoing efforts to expand beyond Earth to the Moon, Mars, and elsewhere.

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Tesla launches Full Self-Driving in a new region

Today, Tesla launched Full Self-Driving in Australia for purchase by car buyers for $10,100, according to Aussie automotive blog Man of Many, which tried out the suite earlier this week.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has launched its Full Self-Driving suite in a new region, marking a significant step in the company’s progress to expand its driver assistance suite on a global scale.

It is also the first time Tesla has launched FSD in a right-hand-drive market.

Today, Tesla launched Full Self-Driving in Australia for purchase by car buyers for $10,100, according to Aussie automotive blog Man of Many, which tried out the suite earlier this week.

Previously, Basic and Enhanced Autopilot suites were available, but the FSD capability now adds Traffic Light and Stop Sign Control, along with all the features of the previous two Autopilot suites.

It is the first time Tesla has launched the suite by name in a region outside of North America. In China, Tesla has “City Autopilot,” as it was not permitted to use the Full Self-Driving label for regulatory reasons.

However, Tesla still lists Full Self-Driving (Supervised) as available in the U.S., Canada, China, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.

The company teased the launch of the suite in Australia earlier this week, and it appeared to have been released to select media members in the region earlier this week:

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Tesla FSD upcoming Australia release seemingly teased bv media

The rollout of Full Self-Driving in the Australian market will occur in stages, as Model 3 and Model Y vehicles with Hardware 4 will receive the first batch of FSD rollouts in the region.

TechAU also reported that “the initial deployment of FSDs in Australia will roll out to a select number of people outside the company, these people are being invited into Tesla’s Early Access Program.”

Additionally, the company reportedly said it is “very close” to unlocking FSD in customer cars:

Each new Tesla sold will also come with a 30-day free trial of the suite.

Australia is the sixth country to officially have Full Self-Driving available to them, following the United States, Canada, China, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.

Here’s the first look at the suite operating in Australia:

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Tesla AI6 chips will start sample production at surprising Samsung site

AI6 is expected to be used in Tesla’s expanding lineup of high-volume products, such as the Cybercab and Optimus.

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Credit: Tesla/YouTube

It appears that the initial sample production of Tesla’s next-generation AI6 chip would not start in Samsung’s United States-based facilities. 

AI6 is expected to be used in Tesla’s expanding lineup of high-volume products, such as the Cybercab and Optimus.

Early AI6 production

As noted in a ZDNet Korea report, the production of initial samples of Tesla’s AI6 chip is expected to start at Samsung Electronics’ domestic foundry and packing facilities in South Korea. Mass production for AI6 chips will follow at the tech giant’s Texas-based foundry in Taylor, which is expected to start operations in 2025. Investment in mass production facilities for the Taylor plant are expected to start this year, the publication noted.

Samsung has reportedly finalized the process design kit for its second-generation 2nm technology. This node offers a 12% performance improvement, 25% lower power consumption, and an 8% reduction in chip area compared to its previous-generation counterparts. 

Tesla’s AI6 deal

As per previous reports, Tesla has signed a $16.5 billion contract with Samsung for the production of its AI6 chips. In a post on social media platform X, Musk clarified that $16.5 billion is actually just the bare minimum. Considering that the demand for AI6 chips will be substantial due to the ramp of products such as Optimus and the Cybercab, it would not be farfetched if the deal becomes notably larger in the future.

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Musk has shared his excitement for Samsung’s production of AI6 chips, with the CEO stating on X that he would “walk the line personally” in the facility to “accelerate the pace of progress.” In a follow-up comment, the Tesla CEO stated that Samsung is fully aware of what a real partnership with Tesla will be like. “I had a video call with the chairman and senior leadership of Samsung to go over what a real partnership would be like. Use the strengths of both companies to achieve a great outcome,” Musk wrote in his post. 

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Elon Musk’s Boring Company begins Tesla FSD testing in Las Vegas tunnels

The update was shared by Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) CEO Steve Hill.

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Credit: The Boring Company/X

The Boring Company has started testing Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) system in its Las Vegas tunnels. 

The update was shared by Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) CEO Steve Hill in a comment to Fortune.

Controlled FSD testing

In his comments, Hill noted that Tesla’s FSD tests in the Boring Company’s underground tunnels in Las Vegas have been going on for months. However, the full-self driving Teslas have reportedly not been carrying passengers during the tests. Interestingly enough, Hill noted that the FSD-driven vehicles have not had any incidents in the Boring Company tunnels yet, though safety drivers have been required to intervene “periodically.”

Hill further noted that the self-driving Teslas have found some spots that seem quite difficult in the underground tunnels system. The LVCVA CEO added that the rock walls of the Boring Company tunnels and their colorful lighting have created some “interesting but odd lighting” for FSD. That being said, Hill noted that the FSD tests are ongoing, though the LVCVA will likely be a consultant before the self-driving vehicles’ safety drivers are removed. 

The executive, however, noted that it will only be a matter of time before the Teslas in Las Vegas’ Boring Company tunnels are operating without a driver. “Sooner or later, this is going to be autonomous,” Hill said.

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Vegas Loop updates

The Boring Company’s underground transit system has been operating beneath the Las Vegas Convention Center for about four years. While the network is slated for expansion across more of the city, it currently connects the convention grounds with a handful of nearby hotels. Updates from the Boring Company’s official social media account on X suggests that tunneling is underway across other stops in Las Vegas.

As per the Boring Company on its official website, the greater Vegas Loop, when completed, will have 104 stations across 68 miles of tunnels. This should allow the underground system to serve an estimated 90,000 passengers per hour. It will also be able to connect key locations across the city, such as Harry Reid International Airport, Allegiant Stadium, and downtown.

While the Vegas Loop is nowhere near complete, Hill noted that the system is already well appreciated by residents and visitors. As per the LVCVA CEO, the underground transport system is the “highest rated feature we have” at the Convention Center.  “People love it,” he said, adding that the only reason the tunnels are not coming faster is due to holdups with permits. “We’re holding them back. They’re not holding us back,” he stated.

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