Connect with us

News

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon just became America’s longest-lived astronaut spaceship

NASA's SpaceX Crew-1 astronauts celebrated a new record today, making Crew Dragon the longest-lived American astronaut spacecraft ever. (NASA)

Published

on

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon has officially become the longest-lived American astronaut spacecraft ever built, beating an 84-day record set by the Apollo-era Skylab-4 mission almost half a century ago.

Crew Dragon was able to beat that record so quickly because NASA ultimately chose to cannibalize its existing Saturn rocket and Apollo CSM spacecraft expertise, production capabilities, and budget to go all-in on the Space Shuttle program. Meant to be quickly and cheaply reusable, a wide range of compromises, budget shortfalls, and design-by-committee missteps ultimately produced a Shuttle that was horrifically complex, unsafe, only partially reusable, suboptimal for most tasks, and more expensive to launch than Saturn V.

The Space Shuttle was ultimately a beast to refurbish and “reuse”, often requiring an almost complete disassembly and reassembly and extensive rework on most propulsive components. Partially due to those extreme shortcomings and a catastrophically fatal launch failure just five years after its debut, the Shuttle was never able to get anywhere close to realizing its limited but still strong potential, including a maximum orbital longevity of just two or so weeks.

Skylab-4’s command and service module (CSM) spacecraft is pictured during a February 1974 EVA. (NASA)
SpaceX’s privately-developed Crew Dragon is now the new record-holder for crewed American spacecraft longevity. (NASA)

As a result, NASA went from Saturn I, Saturn V, and CSM – a combination that enabled single-launch space stations, multi-month crewed spaceflights, and the Apollo Program – to the Space Shuttle, an anchor that yanked the space agency’s human agency ambitions back to low Earth orbit (LEO). In the Space Shuttle’s defense, NASA did eventually join an international initiative to build the International Space Station (ISS), a program the Shuttle supported with several dozen launches of crucial modules, components, and supplies.

However, had NASA been able to continue the Skylab program with Saturn and CSM, a space station with a habitable volume similar to the 2021 ISS could have been completed in a mere three launches, compared to no less than 30 launches to build the ISS.

https://twitter.com/enterprise_flt/status/1358415793885691904

Regardless, after an unfortunate and unnecessary 47-year pause, SpaceX – with NASA funding – has returned the space agency and the US to its legacy of envelope-pushing. On the heels of 20 successful uncrewed Cargo Dragon missions to and from the ISS over the last 9 years, all of which spent around a month in orbit, SpaceX’s third Crew Dragon launch has already beat the US record for crewed spacecraft longevity on orbit and is ultimately poised to double it before the mission’s end.

Advertisement

Crew Dragon’s Crew-1 astronauts even celebrated the milestone in orbit with (albeit virtually) Ed Gibson, one of the three astronauts that set Skylab-4’s record 47 years prior. Additionally, in a pleasing coincidence, Skylab-4 and SpaceX Crew-1 nearly launched on the same day, meaning that tomorrow (February 8th) is the true 47th anniversary of the Skylab-4 mission’s reentry and splashdown.

SpaceX successfully returned two NASA astronauts to Earth in August 2020. (NASA/SpaceX)

All told, all operational Crew Dragon missions – of which Crew-1 is the first – are scheduled to spend approximately 180 days in orbit between launch and reentry. As the first US spacecraft (and first private spacecraft) to attempt such a long spaceflight, there is obviously some uncertainty and no guarantee that this first try won’t be cut short, but odds are in SpaceX’s favor that Crew Dragon capsule C207 will depart the ISS without issue and safely return its four-astronaut crew back to Earth sometime in May 2021.

Carrying two humans, Crew Dragon floats back to Earth under four massive parachutes. (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

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.

Advertisement
Comments

Elon Musk

Tesla called ‘biggest meme stock we’ve ever seen’ by Yale associate dean

Published

on

Credit: Tesla

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) is being called “the biggest meme stock we’ve ever seen” by Yale School of Management Senior Associate Dean Jeff Sonnenfeld, who made the comments in a recent interview with CNBC.

Sonnenfeld’s comments echo those of many of the company’s skeptics, who argue that its price-to-earnings ratio is far too high when compared to other companies also in the tech industry. Tesla is often compared to companies like Apple, Nvidia, and Microsoft when these types of discussions come up.

Fundamentally, yes, Tesla does trade at a P/E level that is significantly above that of any comparable company.

However, it is worth mentioning that Tesla is not traded like a typical company, either.

Here’s what Sonnenfeld said regarding Tesla:

“This is the biggest meme stock we’ve ever seen. Even at its peak, Amazon was nowhere near this level. The PE on this, well above 200, is just crazy. When you’ve got stocks like Nvidia, the price-earnings ratio is around 25 or 30, and Apple is maybe 35 or 36, Microsoft around the same. I mean, this is way out of line to be at a 220 PE. It’s crazy, and they’ve, I think, put a little too much emphasis on the magic wand of Musk.”

Many analysts have admitted in the past that they believe Tesla is an untraditional stock in the sense that many analysts trade it based on narrative and not fundamentals. Ryan Brinkman of J.P. Morgan once said:

“Tesla shares continue to strike us as having become completely divorced from the fundamentals.”

Dan Nathan, another notorious skeptic of Tesla shares, recently turned bullish on the stock because of “technicals and sentiment.” He said just last week:

“I think from a trading perspective, it looks very interesting.”

Nathan said Tesla shares show signs of strength moving forward, including holding its 200-day moving average and holding against current resistance levels.

Sonnenfeld’s synopsis of Tesla shares points out that there might be “a little too much emphasis on the magic wand of Musk.”

Elon Musk just bought $1 billion in Tesla stock, his biggest purchase ever

This could refer to different things: perhaps his recent $1 billion stock buy, which sent the stock skyrocketing, or the fact that many Tesla investors are fans and owners who do not buy and sell on numbers, but rather on news that Musk might report himself.

Tesla is trading around $423.76 at the time of publication, as of 3:25 p.m. on the East Coast.

Continue Reading

News

Tesla makes big change to Full Self-Driving doghouse that drivers will like

Now, it is changing the timeframe of which strikes will be removed, cutting it in half. The strikes will be removed every 3.5 days, as long as no strikes are received during the time period.

Published

on

tesla cabin facing camera
Tesla's Cabin-facing camera is used to monitor driver attentiveness. (Credit: Andy Slye/YouTube)

Tesla is making a big change to its Full Self-Driving doghouse that drivers will like.

The doghouse is a hypothetical term used to describe the penalty period that Tesla applies to drivers who receive too many infractions related to distracted driving.

Previously, Tesla implemented a seven-day ban on the use of Full Self-Driving for those who received five strikes in a vehicle equipped with a cabin camera and three strikes for those without a cabin camera.

It also forgave one strike per week of Full Self-Driving use, provided the driver did not receive any additional strikes during the seven-day period.

Now, it is changing the timeframe of which strikes will be removed, cutting it in half. The strikes will be removed every 3.5 days, as long as no strikes are received during the time period.

The change was found by Not a Tesla App, which noticed the adjustment in the Owner’s Manual for the 2025.32 Software Update.

The system undoubtedly helps improve safety as it helps keep drivers honest. However, there are definitely workarounds, which people are using and promoting for monetary gain, and you can find them on basically any online marketplace, including TikTok shop and Amazon:

People are marketing the product as an FSD cheat device, which the cabin-facing camera will not be able to detect, allowing you to watch something on a phone or look through the windshield at the road.

The safeguards implemented by Tesla are designed to protect drivers from distractions and also protect the company itself from liability. People are still using Full Self-Driving as if it were a fully autonomous product, and it is not.

Tesla even says that the driver must pay attention and be ready to take over in any scenario:

“Yes. Autopilot is a driver assistance system that is intended to be used only with a fully attentive driver. It does not turn a Tesla into a fully autonomous vehicle.

Before enabling Autopilot, you must agree to “keep your hands on the steering wheel at all times” and to always “maintain control and responsibility for your vehicle.” Once engaged, Autopilot will also deliver an escalating series of visual and audio warnings, reminding you to place your hands on the wheel if insufficient torque is applied or your vehicle otherwise detects you may not be attentive enough to the road ahead. If you repeatedly ignore these warnings, you will be locked out from using Autopilot during that trip.

You can override any of Autopilot’s features at any time by steering or applying the accelerator at any time.”

It is good that Tesla is rewarding those who learn from their mistakes with this shorter timeframe to lose the strikes. It won’t be needed forever, though, as eventually, the company will solve autonomy. The question is: when?

Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Elon Musk teases the capabilities of the Tesla Roadster once again

Published

on

Elon Musk has once again teased the capabilities of the Tesla Roadster, fueling the anticipation that many have for the vehicle, despite it still having no public production or delivery date.

The Roadster is among the most anticipated vehicles in the automotive sector currently, and as Tesla has teased its capabilities, from a lightning-fast 1.1-second 0-60 MPH acceleration to potential hovering with cold-gas thrusters, people are eager to see it.

Although the design seemed to be finalized, there was still more work to be done. Earlier this year, as Tesla was showcasing some of the Roadster’s capabilities to Musk, he stated that it was capable of even more.

This pushed back its production date even further, much to the chagrin of those who have been waiting years for it.

Musk continues to tease us all, and as we sit here waiting hopelessly for it to be revealed, he said today that it is “something special beyond a car.”

Musk’s words were in response to a video posted by Tesla China, showing the Roadster in a new promotional video created by a fan.

The Roadster was planned to be released in 2020, but here we are in 2025, and there is still no sign of the vehicle entering production. However, Tesla did say earlier this year that it would host a demo event for the Roadster, where the company would showcase its capabilities.

Lars Moravy said earlier this year:

“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.”

Tesla exec gives big update on Roadster, confirming recent rumor

The delays have been attributed to “radically increased design goals” for the vehicle, which have, without a doubt, improved its capabilities, but at the same time, we just want to know if it’s ever going to come.

Tesla can always make it “better,” but at what point do you say, “Okay, it’s time to show this thing off.” They could always build another, even more capable supercar in the next ten years.

Continue Reading

Trending