As SpaceX CEO Elon Musk so succinctly put it in a post-Falcon Heavy press conference, “I’m trippin’ balls here.” Following a truly stunning inaugural launch of the heavy-lift rocket, during which two of three first stages performed a simultaneous landing back on Earth, Elon’s own Tesla Roadster began its trip to deep space and Mars.
-
- Tom Cross and Thaddeus Cesari photobomb Falcon Heavy ahead of its historic launch. (Tom Cross)
-
- Tom Cross busy at work – taking photos of Falcon Heavy, in this case! (Thaddeus Cesari)
In attendance at the historic event was Teslarati’s launch photographer, Tom Cross, who took full advantage of the opportunity by capturing some truly incredible photos. Below is a gallery of some of the best stills from both Tom’s distant viewing point and remote cameras placed at the launch pad.
Tom has managed to capture Falcon Heavy’s inaugural launch from start to finish, ranging from liftoff, booster separation, booster landings, and much more.
-
- Falcon Heavy clears the top of the strongback in a spectacular fashion. Two of the rocket’s three manifested missions are now for the USAF. (Tom Cross)
-
- Falcon Heavy is effectively three times cheaper than its closest competition. (Tom Cross)
After clearing the launch pad, something Elon Musk famously stated would be the point after which he considered the launch a success, Falcon Heavy rapidly accelerated on its way to orbit, passing one of the riskiest points of rocketry (Max-Q, peak atmospheric pressure) soon after.
Falcon Heavy roars off the pad. (Tom Cross)
Last but not least (at least regarding what’s visible from the ground), Falcon Heavy’s two side boosters successfully separated from the center booster of the rocket and began their return to Cape Canaveral. After boosting back, they reentered into the main bulk of Earth’s atmosphere and performed a truly incredibly landing, synchronized as if they were performing an elaborate aerospace ballet. Tom managed to capture these events in impressive detail from at least several miles away. Before beginning landing procedures, Falcon 9 (and Heavy) boosters effectively surf the atmosphere, using their considerable surface area to glide towards the pad while their titanium grid fins provide additional accuracy and stability.
Finally, both boosters came to a near-simultaneous stop at their separate launch pads. (Tom Cross)
Described perfectly in the post-launch press conference, Elon Musk stated that the synchronized landing was probably the coolest thing he had ever seen, and I have to agree with him on this point. With his exceptional coverage of this historic moment, Tom Cross has truly outdone himself and produced some utterly iconic photographs of Falcon Heavy’s inaugural launch.
-
- Falcon Heavy explodes off of Pad 39A in a spectacle of fire, Roadster in tow. (Tom Cross)
-
- After 11 long years, Falcon Heavy has at least truly become real. (Tom Cross)
In the meantime, Roadster, Starman, and Falcon Heavy’s upper stage (S2) are performing their own form of orbital ballet. SpaceX is likely less than an hour away from commanding the final relight of S2’s Merlin Vacuum engine, a burn that will, at last, send the eccentric payload on its way into deep space and Mars. At least during the several remaining hours of battery power, SpaceX is hosting an ongoing livestream of Roadster and its multiple camera views as it orbits the Earth and prepares to depart from Earth. Catch the stream live at the link below.
Follow along live as launch photographer Tom Cross and I cover these exciting proceedings as close to live as possible.
Teslarati – Instagram – Twitter
Tom Cross – Instagram
Eric Ralph – Twitter
News
Tesla dominates in Norway with 213% sales jump from ’24
Tesla dominated in Norway, and although it lags behind other OEMs for the year, the Model Y is the best-selling model in the country by a long shot.
Tesla has recorded a dominating performance in the Norwegian market as the company outpaced other automakers for the month of May.
The company walked away with 19 percent of the total EV sales for the month, with a vast majority of those coming from the Model Y, which accounted for 2,344 of the 2,598 sales Tesla had for the month.
As a whole, Tesla outpaced Volkswagen by just over 300 units as the German company continues to have a tremendous year across Europe in terms of EVs.
For Tesla, however, it was a tremendous month, especially compared to past years, and as it continues to experience a reduction in sales in the European market, this was an outlier.
A Strong Month
Tesla’s performance in Norway in May was incredibly strong, including growth from the same month last year and quarter-over-quarter improvements.
Tesla sold just 830 units in Norway last May, meaning last month was a 213 percent increase compared to the same month last year.
🚨Tesla is dominating in Norway:
– It has 19.4% of the EV segment.
– Model Y was the best-selling vehicle in Norway in May.
– Best month for Tesla in 2024 in Norway
– 213% increase compared to May ’24BOOM! https://t.co/X84yYNNXAb pic.twitter.com/8RWr4ukfHE
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) June 2, 2025
For the year so far, Tesla has sold 7,600 units in Norway, trailing only Volkswagen, which has had a very strong year in Europe thus far. VW holds 19.5 percent of the total market share for the year in terms of EVs; Tesla has 13.7 percent.
However, the Model Y is still the best-selling EV in the country, and it is not particularly close. With 6,201 sales, it leads the Toyota BZ4X and the Volkswagen ID.4, which have 3,703 and 3,073 sales, respectively.
Tesla has combated weak sales figures in Europe this year, some of which are due to the Model Y changeover across all of the company’s global production facilities. CEO Elon Musk has said that he does not believe demand is an issue for Tesla at all, but instead, Europe is just a weak market.
Figures via EU-EVs
Elon Musk
Elon Musk responds to Tesla Supercharger shutdown on NJ Turnpike
Elon Musk says the New Jersey Turnpike Authority’s decision to decommission 64 Tesla Superchargers ” sounds like corruption.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has responded to Tesla being required to decommission and shut down over 60 Superchargers on the New Jersey Turnpike, a move that was announced late last week.
We reported late last week that Tesla was being required to decommission 64 Superchargers on the New Jersey Turnpike as the governing body of the toll road had chosen a sole, third-party company to provide EV charging solutions. This decision requires Tesla to eliminate its current Superchargers on the Turnpike, one of the country’s heaviest-traveled roads.
Tesla to lose 64 Superchargers on New Jersey Turnpike in controversial decision
The New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA) requested that Tesla shut down the 64 charging stalls as a result of its new partnership, something that many are confused by, considering the company’s Superchargers are accessible to many different car companies and not only Teslas.
Additionally, Tesla’s Supercharger Network has gained a reputation for being one of the most reliable, with an incredibly high rate of upkeep.
With these details being known, the NJTA is still choosing to go with another supplier, not even allowing Tesla to keep its already-built Superchargers active, something that would be widely beneficial to EV drivers as a whole.
Musk believes the move is a sign of corruption:
Sounds like corruption
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 30, 2025
While there is no explicit evidence that this is being done as a retaliatory response to Musk or Tesla specifically, it does seem extremely odd that the NJTA is not allowing the company to keep already-built and active Superchargers available to EV drivers.
Tesla has prepared for this decision for several years already, as it knew this was a possibility. It built 116 other charging piles near the Turnpike, giving drivers access to reliable charging piles.
It would not be a surprise if there was some sort of political motivation behind the removal of Tesla Superchargers on the Turnpike. Politicians have already shown that they are willing to be very vocal about their distaste for Musk and Tesla.
Minnesota Governor and former Vice Presidential Candidate Tim Walz has been very up front about his disdain for the company and its CEO, especially as Musk took a stab at the Federal level with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
News
Tesla bails on crucial piece of India production, aims to rely on imports
Tesla is not keen on establishing an entire production facility in India, and will instead focus on importing.
Tesla is bailing on a crucial piece of the puzzle that would likely enable the production of its vehicles in India, and will instead rely on imports, a bold strategy in the broader scheme, as the country has prioritized local manufacturing in an effort to bolster its economy.
The automaker has dragged its feet to commit to a localized production strategy in India, something that seemed to be the only pathway to a mass market presence in what is the most populous country in the world.
However, Tesla has evidently made a decision on what its plans for the market will be. It seems apparent that it still wants to sell vehicles in India and establish a presence there, but it will not do it in what many would consider a more traditional sense: building vehicles domestically. This is something the company has sparred with the Indian government on for several years.
Now, it’s made up its mind.
During a press conference earlier today, India’s Heavy Industry Minister, Shri Kumaraswamy, confirmed Tesla’s plans for how it will penetrate the massive Indian market, and it will not be doing so through domestic manufacturing:
🚨 India’s Heavy Industry Minister, Shri Kumaraswamy, says Tesla is not interested in local manufacturing in the country: pic.twitter.com/O03fqkAMQ0
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) June 2, 2025
Kumaraswamy indicated that Tesla has no interest in building cars in India, but it wants to establish some presence there, especially with showrooms, allowing citizens to see and drive the cars they could buy from the company.
The move comes as India has made major progress in reducing the import duties that have frightened many automakers from doing business as importers. India’s massive import duties on vehicles built in other countries doubled prices, which is a significant reason for Tesla’s delay in entering the market.
India is considering a reduction to just 10 percent from 100 percent, which would be significant for companies like Tesla, which are doing whatever they can to enter the market without feeling the impact of the duties.
Electric vehicles made up just 2.5 percent of sales in 2024. There were 4.3 million vehicle purchases in India last year.
-
News2 weeks agoTesla posts Optimus’ most impressive video demonstration yet
-
News2 days agoTesla to lose 64 Superchargers on New Jersey Turnpike in controversial decision
-
News2 weeks agoNeuralink Blindsight human trials expected to start in the UAE
-
Elon Musk2 weeks agoTesla’s Elon Musk confirms he’ll stay CEO for at least five more years
-
Elon Musk2 weeks agoElon Musk just revealed more about Tesla’s June Robotaxi launch
-
News2 weeks agoTesla China registrations bounce back to 11.1k vehicles in May’s 2nd full week
-
News1 week agoTesla’s new Model S and X spotted, but they leave a lot to be desired
-
Elon Musk2 weeks agoTesla Robotaxi deemed a total failure by media — even though it hasn’t been released