News
SpaceX is searching for BFR landing sites for early 2020s Mars missions
SpaceX Principal Mars Development Engineer Paul Wooster gave a surprise talk at a February 2018 meeting of the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group, where he provided a brief overview of SpaceX’s plans for the Red Planet, ranging from prospective landing sites for the company’s first missions there to the possibility of including significant secondary payloads on BFR and Falcon Heavy launches.
Wooster reiterated that SpaceX is still targeting the early 2020s for its first true BFR missions to Mars, perhaps less than five years from today. He further discussed prospective landing locations on the planet, emphasizing a need for a smooth landing site, easy access to on or near-surface water ice, and a preference for the warmer and more forgiving mid and low (equatorial) latitudes. A huge amount of work admittedly remains before the company before those missions are even remotely conceivable, especially missions with crew onboard.
If/when SpaceX successfully debuts its Crew Dragon spacecraft and demonstrates the ability to reliably and safely transport humans to and from orbit, a huge amount of the risk currently innate in any long-term interplanetary transport and colony creation will be definitively retired, transforming several of the major problems at hand from clean-slate tech development to optimizing and scaling up functional first-generation designs and hardware.
Crew Dragon’s official uncrewed demonstration debut (DM-1) and perhaps the crewed demonstration follow-on mission (DM-2) will likely have real launch dates announced later this week in an August 3 NASA press conference. Reliable sources have pegged those dates around October-December for DM-1 and 3-6 months later for DM-2
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- SpaceX’s gorgeous Crew Dragon capsule is nearing its own debut, likely before the end of 2018. (SpaceX)
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- The first spaceworthy Crew Dragon capsule is already in Florida, preparing for its November 2018 launch debut. The same capsule will be refurbished and reflown as few as three months after recovery. (SpaceX)
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- Note that Merlin 1D and prior Raptor prototypes both feature traditional single nozzles. (Pauline Acalin)
Nevertheless, SpaceX is demonstrably hard at work designing and building BFR‘s booster, spaceship, and tanker and is moving quickly in the direction of full-scale engineering and production. Much of that prototype manufacturing happens to be taking place in a temporary tent installed in a Port of Los Angeles parking lot near the end of 2017. According to one source engaged in the work there, SpaceX technicians and engineers have already begun rolling out preliminary materials and engineering samples of carbon composite structures and propellant tanks with the massive manufacturing tools (one known as a mandrel) temporarily housed inside.
Just a few miles away, the company is busy preparing a construction site for a permanent BFR factory on a plot of Port of Los Angeles land known as Berth 240. The smaller Phase 1 of that BFR factory is expected to be completed roughly a year after construction begins, placing the inauguration of the dedicated facility sometime around the middle of 2019. Suborbital launches of the massive rocket’s upper stage spaceship are expected in 2019, while orbital launches of BFR are NET 2020.
Read the full summary of Mr. Wooster’s presentation below.
“A walk-on presentation was given by Paul Wooster of SpaceX which highlighted the recent successful test of the Falcon Heavy launch vehicle with its potentially very large payload capacity (100 metric tons). Using the Falcon Heavy and development of an even larger Big Falcon Rocket (BFR) launcher are the basis of their ambitious plans for the future exploration and colonization of Mars, potentially launching missions to Mars within the early 2020s. SpaceX’s current landing site candidates for Mars were shown, having been chosen to provide access to near-surface ice, few landing site hazards (such as large rocks), and enough space for potentially growing a sizeable outpost. The ice sites are in high mid-latitudes and the search for lower latitude candidates, which are preferred, continues. Previously, MEPAG had been told that SpaceX could transport for-fee payloads to the Mars surface. In response to questions, Paul iterated that there is likely to be capacity for secondary payloads on either the Falcon Heavy or BFR launchers, although details remain to be negotiated once the launcher capabilities are firmly established.”
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SpaceX reached an incredible milestone with its Starlink program with a launch last night, as the 3,000th satellite of the year was launched into low Earth orbit.
On Monday, SpaceX also achieved its 32nd flight with a single Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
The mission was Starlink 6-92, and it utilized the Falcon 9 B1067 for the 32nd time this year, the most-used Falcon booster. The flight delivered SpaceX’s 3000th Starlink satellite of the year, a massive achievement.
There were 29 Starlink satellites launched and deployed into LEO during this particular mission:
Falcon 9 launches 29 @Starlink satellites from Florida pic.twitter.com/utKrXjHzPN
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) December 9, 2025
SpaceX has a current goal of certifying its Falcon boosters for 40 missions apiece, according to Spaceflight Now.
The flight was the 350th orbital launch from the nearby SLC-40, and the 3,000 satellites that have been successfully launched this year continue to contribute to the company’s goal of having 12,000 satellites contributing to global internet coverage.
There are over five million users of Starlink, the latest data shows.
Following the launch and stage separation, the Falcon 9 booster completed its mission with a perfect landing on the ‘Just Read the Instructions’ droneship.
The mission was the 575th overall Falcon 9 launch, highlighting SpaceX’s operational tempo, which continues to be accelerated. The company averages two missions per week, and underscores CEO Elon Musk’s vision of a multi-planetary future, where reliable connectivity is crucial for remote work, education, and emergency response.
As Starlink expands and works toward that elusive and crucial 12,000 satellite goal, missions like 6-92 pave the way for innovations in telecommunications and enable more internet access to people across the globe.
With regulatory approvals in over 100 countries and millions of current subscribers, SpaceX continues to democratize space, proving that reusability is not just feasible, but it’s also revolutionary.
Tesla expanded its new Full Self-Driving program, which gives people the opportunity to experience the company’s suite, in Europe.
Tesla recently launched an opportunity for Europeans to experience Full Self-Driving, not in their personal vehicles, but through a new ride-along program that initially launched in Italy, France, and Germany back in late November.
People could experience it by booking a reservation with a local Tesla showroom, but timeslots quickly filled up, making it difficult to keep up with demand. Tesla expanded the program and offered some additional times, but it also had its sights set on getting the program out to new markets.
It finally achieved that on December 9, as it launched rides in Denmark and Switzerland, adding the fourth and fifth countries to the program.
Tesla confirmed the arrival of the program to Denmark and Switzerland on X:
Now available in Denmark & Switzerland
🇩🇰 https://t.co/IpCSwHO566 https://t.co/V2N5EarLNX
— Tesla Europe & Middle East (@teslaeurope) December 9, 2025
The program, while a major contributor to Tesla’s butts in seats strategy, is truly another way for the company to leverage its fans in an effort to work through the regulatory hurdles it is facing in Europe.
Tesla has faced significant red tape in the region, and although it has tested the FSD suite and been able to launch this ride-along program, it is still having some tremendous issues convincing regulatory agencies to allow it to give it to customers.
CEO Elon Musk has worked with regulators, but admitted the process has been “insanely painful.”
The most recent development with FSD and its potential use in Europe dealt with the Dutch approval authority, known as the RDW.
Tesla says Europe could finally get FSD in 2026, and Dutch regulator RDW is key
Tesla said it believes some regulations are “outdated and rules-based,” which makes the suite ineligible for use in the European jurisdiction.
The RDW is working with Tesla to gain approval sometime early next year, but there are no guarantees. However, Tesla’s angle with the ride-along program seems to be that if it can push consumers to experience it and have a positive time, it should be easier for it to gain its footing across Europe with regulatory agencies.
News
Tesla ramps hiring for Roadster as latest unveiling approaches
Tesla published three new positions for the Roadster this week, relating to Battery Manufacturing, General Manufacturing, and Vision Engineering.
Tesla is ramping up hiring for positions related to the Roadster program, the company’s ultra-fast supercar that has been teased to potentially hover by CEO Elon Musk.
The company seems to be crossing off its last handful of things before it plans to unveil the vehicle on April Fool’s Day, just about four months away.
Tesla published three new positions for the Roadster this week, relating to Battery Manufacturing, General Manufacturing, and Vision Engineering. All three are located in Northern California, with two being at the Fremont Factory and the other at the company’s Engineering HQ in Palo Alto.
Technical Program Manager, Battery Manufacturing
Located in Fremont, this role specifically caters to the design of the Roadster to factory operations. It appears this role will mostly have to do with developing and engineering the Roadster’s battery pack and establishing the production processes for it:
“You will foster collaboration across design engineering, manufacturing, quality, facilities, and production to align with company priorities. Additionally, you will understand project opportunities, challenges, and dependencies; translate scattered information into concise, complete messages; and communicate them to every team member. As the business process development lead, you will develop, maintain, and implement tools and processes to accelerate battery manufacturing execution, achieve cross-functional alignment, and deliver highly efficient systems.”
Manufacturing Engineer, Roadster
Also located in Fremont, this role also has to deal with the concept development and launch of battery manufacturing equipment. Tesla says:
“In this role, you will take large-scale manufacturing systems for new battery products and architectures from the early concept development stage through equipment launch, optimization, and handover to local operations teams.”
Manufacturing Vision Engineer, Battery Vision
This position is in Palo Alto at Tesla’s Engineering Headquarters, and requires the design and scale of advanced inspection and control systems to next-generation battery products:
“You’ll work on automation processes that directly improve battery performance, quality, and cost, collaborating with world-class engineers in a fast-paced, hands-on environment.”
Developing and deploying 2D and 3D vision and measurement systems from proof-of-concept to deployment on high-volume battery manufacturing lines is part of the job description.
Roadster Unveiling
Tesla plans to unveil the Roadster on April 1, and although it was planned for late this year, it is nice to see the company put out a definitive date.
Musk said on the Joe Rogan Experience Podcast in late October:
“Whether it’s good or bad, it will be unforgettable. My friend Peter Thiel once reflected that the future was supposed to have flying cars, but we don’t have flying cars. I think if Peter wants a flying car, he should be able to buy one…I think it has a shot at being the most memorable product unveil ever.”
Production should begin between 12 to 18 months after unveiling, so we could see it sometime in 2027.
SpaceX reaches incredible milestone with Starlink program
Tesla expands new Full Self-Driving program in Europe
