News
Mysterious Air Force spaceplane returns to Earth more than two years after SpaceX launch
More than 25 months after it lifted off on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, the US Air Force’s secretive X-37B spaceplane successfully returned to Earth on October 27th, breaking its own record for time spent in orbit.
As always, the specifics of what exactly the X-37B spaceplane does in orbit remain as obscure as ever.
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched X-37B on its fifth mission – OTV-5 – on September 7th, 2017, just a handful of months after successfully launching a similarly secretive mission (NROL-76) for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and a handful of months prior to the company’s even more mysterious ‘Zuma’ launch. SpaceX’s OTV-5 launch had to race against the clock to beat Hurricane Irma’s forecasted landfall and the company managed to launch just a few days prior, while the booster’s post-landing operations had to be similarly expedited.
Thankfully, all went as planned and SpaceX recovery technicians had Falcon 9 booster B1040 safely stored inside a nearby hangar before Hurricane Irma impacted the Florida coast. B1040 was reused for the second and final time during the June 2018 launch of the SES-12 communications satellite and marked the second to last launch of a pre-Block 5 variant of Falcon 9.
In the interim, the USAF X-37B was quietly stationed in low Earth orbit (LEO), performing any number of tasks. Over the course of the 779 days it spent in orbit, the spaceplane modified its orbit several times before finally reentering Earth’s atmosphere to land at Kennedy Space Center’s Shuttle Landing Facility (KSC SLF) runway.
During the OTV-4 mission that preceded OTV-5, the same X-37B spacecraft spent 717 days in orbit – just shy of two years. OTV-5 surpassed that endurance record on August 26th and remained in orbit for another two months, breaking its own record by a bit less than 10%. For the most part, the USAF’s most consistent cover story for the X-37B paints the spaceplane as a platform for testing reusable spacecraft hardware, but that explanation has never made a huge amount of sense alongside the fact that each mission has averaged more than 570 days in orbit.
“[The X-37B is the] Air Force’s premier reusable and unmanned spacecraft providing the performance and flexibility to improve technologies in a way that allows scientists and engineers to recover experiments tested in a long-duration space environment.”
USAF, October 27th, 2019
In reality, it’s largely assumed that X-37B serves as a kind of flexible, on-call spy satellite, featuring a payload bay with plenty of room for signals intelligence or imaging hardware and a level of orbital endurance that makes it comparable to satellites. For example, OTV-5’s orbital parameters meant that the spacecraft routinely overflew Russia for much of the 25 months it spent in space.
Aside from the “experiments” and likely espionage-related payloads X-37B can stow inside its payload bay, the spacecraft also brings along a small solar array and radiator and features a hydrazine maneuvering system with substantial delta-V reserves, allowing it to significantly change its orbit.
In an unexpected twist, the USAF press release suggested that X-37B also provided “a ride for small satellites”, unusual because the US never registered those satellites with the UN if they were actually deployed from the spacecraft – a potential violation of international spaceflight treaties.
Following its successful October 27th recovery, Boeing and USAF teams will begin the process of refurbishing X-37B and preparing it for its sixth orbital mission as soon as possible. Known as OTV-6, the spacecraft is scheduled to head to orbit once more on a ULA Atlas V rocket that is scheduled to launch no earlier than Q2 2020.
Check out Teslarati’s Marketplace! We offer Tesla accessories, including for the Tesla Cybertruck and Tesla Model 3.
News
Texas lawmakers urge Tesla to delay Austin robotaxi launch to September
The letter urges Tesla to delay its initial robotaxi launch in the interest of public safety.
A group of Democratic lawmakers from Austin is asking Tesla to postpone its planned robotaxi rollout, at least until a new state law governing autonomous vehicles takes effect in September.
The letter, which was sent Wednesday, urges Tesla to delay its initial robotaxi launch in the interest of public safety.
What the lawmakers’ letter says
In their letter, the Democratic lawmakers stated that delaying Tesla’s initial robotaxi launch would build trust in the electric vehicle maker’s autonomous vehicle operations.
“We are formally requesting that Tesla delay autonomous robotaxi operations until the new law takes effect on September 1, 2025. We believe this is in the best interest of both public safety and building public trust in Tesla’s operations,” the letter read.
The lawmakers noted that if Tesla wishes to push through with its planned June 22 launch, the company must provide detailed information explaining its robotaxi service’s initial launch.
New rules kick in September
The new Texas law passed state legislature last month, and it introduces stricter requirements for companies deploying fully self-driving cars.
Current state law allows autonomous vehicle testing without a human driver, as long as vehicles meet basic registration and insurance standards. The updated framework gives state agencies more oversight, including the ability to revoke permits if autonomous vehicles pose safety risks.
It remains to be seen if the Democratic lawmakers’ efforts will bear fruit, especially since Texas is state where Republicans hold the governorship and majorities in both legislative chambers, as noted in a Reuters report.
Elon Musk, for his part, confirmed that Tesla’s initial robotaxi launch for Austin this June will start with a small fleet of Model Y vehicles. He also noted the service would initially operate only in parts of the city the company deems safest.
Tesla has not issued a comment about the Democratic lawmakers’ letter as of writing.
Elon Musk
xAI’s Grok 3 partners with Oracle Cloud for corporate AI innovation
Elon Musk’s xAI partners with Oracle to deliver Grok 3 to enterprise users via OCI. The move boosts Grok’s reach.
xAI’s Grok 3 is partnering with Oracle Cloud to deliver its advanced AI model to corporate customers.
Oracle announced its collaboration with xAI earlier this week. The partnership leverages Oracle’s robust infrastructure to offer xAI’s Grok 3, positioning it as a transformative tool for business applications.
“Today, we announced xAI has selected Oracle to offer xAI’s Grok models via OCI Generative AI service for a wide range of use cases and will use OCI’s leading AI infrastructure to train and run inferencing for its next-generation Grok models,” said Clay Magouyrk, Executive Vice President at Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, via LinkedIn.
Oracle’s cost-effective AI capabilities will support xAI’s demanding workloads, enabling faster processing for enterprise users.
Oracle’s Karan Batta told Reuters: “Our goal here is to make sure that we can provide a portfolio of models – we don’t have our own.” Oracle will host Grok 3 alongside models from Meta, Mistral, and Cohere, ensuring corporate data remains secure within existing Oracle protections.
Oracle’s strategy focuses on integrating popular AI models into corporate software, and xAI’s Grok 3 enhances this portfolio. The collaboration expands Grok’s reach to businesses seeking secure, high-performance AI solutions for diverse use cases.
Elon Musk’s xAI launched Grok 3 in February. It competes with models from DeepSeek and OpenAI. Grok 3 is free for all X users, but features are limited. X offers Premium and Premium+ subscribers access to Grok 3’s advanced capabilities like DeepResearch and Think modes. Users who are not paid subscribers have access to Grok 3’s basic features.
Elon Musk’s companies have a longstanding relationship with Oracle. In 2018, Tesla appointed Oracle founder Larry Ellison to its board, a move Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives called a “home run appointment.”
In 2023, Ellison–who is no longer on Tesla’s board but still close with Musk–revealed plans for a Tesla Cybertruck police car.
“Our next-generation police car is coming out very soon,” Ellison said at the 2023 Oracle CloudWorld conference in Las Vegas. “It’s my favorite police car. It’s my favorite car, actually. It’s Elon’s favorite car.”
Grok 3’s integration into Oracle Cloud strengthens xAI’s position in the corporate artificial intelligence market. By combining Oracle’s infrastructure with Grok’s cutting-edge capabilities, this collaboration could redefine enterprise AI adoption, driving innovation across industries.
Elon Musk
Tesla Robotaxis are becoming a common sight on Austin’s public roads
Tesla Robotaxi sightings are becoming much more frequent ahead of its launch planned for this month.
Tesla Robotaxis are becoming a common sight on the public roads of Austin, Texas, as yet another test mule has been spotted near the company’s target launch date.
Just over a week ago, the first public sighting of a driverless Tesla Robotaxi was reported. The vehicle was an updated version of the Tesla Model Y, which will be the initial model used in the public deployment of the Robotaxi platform.
Throughout the past week, sightings have been more common, as people in Austin have been looking for the unique decal Tesla is placing on car doors to recognize the driverless vehicles (After all, Robotaxis are not as easy to recognize as driverless vehicles without the LIDAR unit on the roof like Waymo).
Yet another sighting of a Robotaxi was shared on social media today, just two days before CEO Elon Musk’s proposed launch date of June 22:
🚨 Tesla Robotaxis are being spotted all over Austin!
Here’s another spotted within the last hour: https://t.co/79l1RHpL5d pic.twitter.com/bOIlZYgs0U
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) June 18, 2025
It is easy to tell that there is nobody in the driver’s seat of this vehicle. Tesla is using its white interior on this particular mule, making it incredibly simple to recognize that no human is controlling the car.
Whether Tesla will still meet the June 22nd deadline remains to be seen, but it is no secret that the company is prioritizing safety ahead of offering public rides.
Tesla will initially roll out the Robotaxi platform in Austin, but it has already started the regulatory process in other areas, specifically California.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is also helping to streamline the process for companies developing driverless vehicles by giving exemptions to automakers. It will make things much more efficient, benefiting Tesla and other car companies that have similar plans.
Tesla Robotaxi just got a big benefit from the U.S. government
Texas lawmakers urge Tesla to delay Austin robotaxi launch to September
xAI’s Grok 3 partners with Oracle Cloud for corporate AI innovation
Tesla Robotaxis are becoming a common sight on Austin’s public roads
-
News1 week agoI took a Tesla Cybertruck weekend Demo Drive – Here’s what I learned
-
Elon Musk1 week agoTesla tops Cathie Wood’s stock picks, predicts $2,600 surge
-
News1 week agoFirst Tesla driverless robotaxi spotted in the wild in Austin, TX
-
Elon Musk1 week agoX account with 184 followers inadvertently saves US space program amid Musk-Trump row
-
Elon Musk2 weeks agoSpaceX to decommission Dragon spacecraft in response to Pres. Trump war of words with Elon Musk
-
News2 weeks agoSpaceX marks 500th Falcon launch with Starlink 11-22 Mission
-
News2 weeks agoTesla adds useful Model 3/Y feature home chargers will love
-
News2 weeks agoTesla announces massive new achievement with 8 million cars produced