News
SpaceX ready for back to back astronaut, Starlink launches
Two SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets remain on track to attempt back-to-back astronaut and Starlink satellite launches later this week.
Both SpaceX East Coast drone ships Just Read The Instructions (JRTI) and A Shortfall of Gravitas (ASOG) and two new support and fairing recovery ships (Bob and Doug) are all headed northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, where they’ll soon reach landing zones stationed just ~50 km (~30 mi) apart. As early as 9:03pm EST Wednesday, November 10th (02:03 UTC 11 Nov), the first of those Falcon 9s is scheduled to lift off on its second mission for NASA, sending a new Crew Dragon and four international astronauts on their way to the International Space Station (ISS).
If all goes to plan, less than a day and a half later, a second Falcon 9 rocket will lift off from SpaceX’s other East Coast launch site as part of “Starlink 4-1” – the company’s first dedicated Florida Starlink launch in almost six months.
Starlink 4-1 is scheduled to launch NET 7:40am EST (12:40 UTC) on Friday, November 12th with Falcon 9 booster B1062, a new expendable upper stage, a (likely) reused fairing, and 53 Starlink V1.5 satellites – likely the first of their kind to launch from the East Coast. While the mission profile will be almost identical to all 29 of SpaceX’s dedicated East Coast Starlink launches, it will be targeting a slightly lower and different orbit to kick off the second of five constellation ‘shells’.
Unlike the ~1700 Starlink V1.0 satellites SpaceX launched over the last two years, the Starlink V1.5 satellites the company recently began launching feature a partially upgraded design but are mainly distinguished by the addition of several ‘space lasers’. More officially known as optical interlinks, those lasers will allow Starlink satellites to connect to each other and route communications entirely in orbit, exploiting the vacuum of space to create what amount to wireless fiber-optic links with bandwidth on the order of tens or hundreds of gigabits per second (Gbps). As a result, there’s a good chance that SpaceX will eventually replace the first-generation Starlink V1.0 constellation as soon as possible, leaving an upgraded and laser-linked copycat in their place.
If SpaceX interlinks most or all of its constellation with lasers, it could drastically simplify Starlink ground station operations and cut down on the bureaucratic work required to license and build those stations in virtually every country Starlink wants to operate in. It would also make it far easier for SpaceX to serve unprecedentedly high-quality internet to aircraft and ships – a captive market practically begging for disruption.
In a prelaunch briefing late on November 9th, SpaceX vice president Bill Gerstenmaier revealed that drone ship Just Read The Instructions (JRTI) – originally meant to support Crew-3’s booster landing – had gotten “beat up” by the Atlantic, forcing it to swap places with A Shortfall of Gravitas (ASOG). It’s unclear if the damage JRTI may or may not have received is enough to require a return to port, which could trigger a week or more of Starlink 4-1 launch delays. For now, though, there are no signs of a delay.
Crew-3
Prior to Starlink 4-1, SpaceX is set for its fifth astronaut launch since May 2020 and third operational NASA ‘crew rotation’ mission on Wednesday, November 10th. Crew-3 will also host the 15th through 18th astronauts launched by SpaceX, nominally sending Raja Chari, Thomas Marshburn, Kayla Barron (NASA), and Matthias Maurer (ESA) on their way to an ISS docking on November 11th.
-
Tesla Energy has introduced the Powerwall Lease in conjunction with Tesla Electric, making the service available in Texas. This new option delivers whole-home backup power using two Powerwall units for a net monthly cost of $35 after credits, accompanied by a low fixed electricity rate.
Under the lease terms, customers pay a one-time order fee of $100. The base lease payment for the two Powerwalls is approximately $122 per month during the first year, subject to a 3 percent annual escalator thereafter. Enrollment in a qualifying Tesla Electric Backup plan or Virtual Power Plant plan provides an $87 monthly credit.
Powerwall Lease is now available with Tesla Electric in Texas
Whole-home backup for $35/month, with a low fixed electricity rate
– Two Powerwalls, $0 installation
– Storm Watch outage protection
– One app to manage it all pic.twitter.com/oTzqc6K3aF— Tesla Energy (@teslaenergy) August 13, 2026
This credit lowers the effective cost to roughly $35 per month plus applicable tax.
Installation of the standard system carries no additional charge. The package features Storm Watch for outage protection and allows complete management through a single Tesla application. The system supplies continuous whole-home backup capability.
The Powerwall system enables households to maintain electricity during severe storms that disrupt the utility grid. When outages occur, the batteries automatically provide seamless backup power to the home.
Tesla announces 100k Powerwalls are participating in Virtual Power Plants
Tesla Storm Watch monitors weather forecasts and ensures the units are fully charged ahead of anticipated severe weather events so that power remains available throughout the disruption, keeping lights, refrigeration, and other essential systems operating without interruption.
Availability is restricted to select Texas locations where retail electric choice exists. Participants must lease exactly two Powerwall units and maintain continuous enrollment with Tesla Electric. Solar panels cannot be included under this particular lease arrangement.
The monthly credit activates automatically once the system is installed, receives permission to operate, and enrollment is confirmed. To retain the credit, customers are required to stay enrolled in Tesla Electric and fulfill all program conditions.
Nonstandard installations that involve electrical upgrades or special permitting may lead to extra expenses and might impact eligibility for the credit, so be sure to check with either your installer or Tesla to ensure you will still qualify.
Elon Musk continues to tease the unveiling event for the Tesla Roadster, a continuing trend that has grown into a bigger game of “When” for fans who have been waiting years for the car to finally enter production.
A video shared on X of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast that Musk appeared on last year, teasing the Roadster unveiling, was shared once again on the social media platform. The poster said the Roadster event will be “unforgettable.”
Musk agreed:
Yes
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2026
The timing is interesting because just yesterday, Musk said that we will be getting flying cars, and for years, Tesla has hinted that it could develop a SpaceX cold gas thruster package that would help the car float or fly for a short period of time.
It would be reasonable to assume Tesla’s major delays with this unveiling event are likely caused by the company’s need to break the rules and push the envelope on nearly everything. Last July, Lars Moravy, Tesla’s VP of Vehicle Engineering, said:
“Roadster is definitely in development. We did talk about it last Sunday night. We are gearing up for a super cool demo. It’s going to be mind blowing. We showed Elon some cool demos last week of the tech we’ve been working on and he got a little excited.”
The latest updates that Tesla has given us are that the Roadster is in design development, and it did have several potential dates for an unveiling event this year, including April. It was then pushed to August.
However, there are no clues as to when Tesla will be ready, and fans are certainly getting frustrated with the delays.
For what it is worth, Franz von Holzhausen told Jay Leno this week that the event would be “very soon.”
We sure hope.
Lifestyle
Tesla’s driverless Cybercab just passed a big test with State Governor
Florida’s governor rode Tesla’s Cybercab at a closed test track and called the experience impressive.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis rode in a Tesla Cybercab on a closed test track this week and came away impressed, posting on X that the vehicle “successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.” He called the ride “impressive.”
The stop was part of a broader event Monday at SunTrax, a 775 acre state owned proving ground in Auburndale that Florida built specifically to test autonomous and connected vehicles before they reach public roads. Standing next to a gold Cybercab, DeSantis described the car in plain terms: “You go in there and you just sit. You have a screen. There’s no steering wheel, no pedals. Clearly these things could be very beneficial.”
We took a ride on a robotaxi on the Suntrax course and it successfully navigated all hazards — a kid running into the street, a crash with police stopping traffic, a Model S cutting us off, etc.
Impressive! https://t.co/FVAkzFLz3r
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) August 11, 2026
DeSantis paired the praise with a caveat that has followed autonomous vehicles since the category existed. “You don’t want to be in an autonomous vehicle and it drives you into a ditch. That would not be good,” he said, framing safety validation as the gate before wider deployment.
SunTrax, the 2.25 mile oval which the state calls the only high speed autonomous vehicle test track in the Southeast, can simulate rain, pedestrian crossings, hills and crowded urban conditions at highway speeds, letting companies push a car past what an early public rollout would risk. Tesla, Waymo and Beep all use the facility, and Florida’s regulatory approach, among the most permissive for autonomous vehicles in the country, doesn’t require a human operator inside a fully autonomous car.
Tesla has reason to want the blessing of Florida and states beyond, as the Cybercab entered volume production at Gigafactory Texas this spring and has since self certified as SAE Level 4 under Texas law. Public road testing so far has kept a safety monitor in the passenger seat, and Florida is where Tesla has been expanding its existing Model Y based Robotaxi service instead, adding Miami in July and then Orlando and Tampa two weeks later. A closed track endorsement from a sitting governor doesn’t change any of that, but it does put Tesla’s newest hardware in front of a state that has already shown it will move fast on rules.
Tesla launches Powerwall Lease for affordable home backup
Elon Musk teases Tesla Roadster unveiling once again
