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SpaceX completes Falcon 9 test fire, space station supply mission up next
After almost exactly 15 months of dormancy, SpaceX’s Launch Complex 40 (LC-40) came to life with the roar of nine Merlin 1D rocket engines as Falcon 9 1035 conducted its second pre-launch static fire in preparation for the company’s 13th Commercial Resupply Services mission, CRS-13. Previously tasked with the launch of the CRS-11 Cargo Dragon, the booster completed its mission and returned safely to Landing Zone-1 (LZ-1) on June 3 2017. The path towards LC-40’s reactivation has delayed the launch approximately one week, but December 6th’s successful static fire bodes well for the current launch date, 11:46 AM on December 12.
Static fire test of Falcon 9 complete—targeting launch of CRS-13 on December 12 from Pad 40, followed by launch of Zuma from Pad 40 in early January.
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) December 6, 2017
On September 6 2016, LC-40 was effectively destroyed over the course of the Amos-6 failure. In months that followed, SpaceX reactivated LC-39A in order to continue chipping away at the company’s launch manifest, but also began the slow process of damage assessment and reconstruction of LC-40. It is safe to assume that almost every single component of the ground support equipment (GSE) was completely replaced, and interviews with Cape Canaveral’s 45th Space Wing commander suggest that SpaceX went further still, transforming the painful situation into an opportunity.
In an exclusive and frank conversation between Brig. Gen. Wayne Monteith and Florida Today’s Emre Kelly, the commander suggested that extensive design changes and additional hardening measures implemented during reconstruction are expected to make LC-40 exceptionally resilient to the rigors of rocket launches. Most tellingly, if perhaps overly optimistic, Monteith estimated that a second vehicle failure on the order of Amos-6 might only take two months to recover from, compared to the 15 months that followed Amos-6. He attributed this claim to GSE that is now largely buried underground, theoretically protecting the vast apparatus of hand-welded piping necessary to fuel the Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The replacement Transporter/Erector/Launcher (TEL) tasked with supporting Falcon 9 during integration and launch also appears to have been modernized, and will likely end up looking quite similar to the monolithic white TEL that resides at LC-39A.
Rocket and spacecraft for CRS-13 are flight-proven. Falcon 9’s first stage previously launched SpaceX’s eleventh resupply mission for @NASA, and Dragon flew to the @Space_Station in support of our sixth cargo resupply mission. pic.twitter.com/RY4F2TrWO2
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) December 6, 2017
With CRS-13’s static fire now complete, the mission is set to become the fifth operational reuse of a flight-proven Falcon 9 booster in 2017, thanks to NASA’s unusually rapid acceptance of the new practice. Further still, if Iridium-4’s December 22 launch date holds, and it does look to be stable for the moment, SpaceX will rather incredibly have conducted five commercial reuses of a Falcon 9 in its first year of operations, meaning that one third of SpaceX’s 2017 missions will have launched aboard flight-proven boosters. Also impressive is SpaceX’s full-stop move towards the reuse of Cargo Dragon capsules, and the company stated over the summer that it was hoping to almost completely redirect Cargo Dragon’s manufacturing facilities towards Dragon 2, also known as Crew Dragon. This was most recently reiterated several months ago and is presumed to still be the company’s goal moving forward, and CRS-12 is believed to have been the last “new” Cargo Dragon that will fly. CRS-13’s Dragon previously flew the CRS-6 mission in April 2015.
Photos shared privately with the author show CRS-13’s Falcon 9 to be covered in a graceful layer of soot from its previous recovery, similar in appearance to Falcon 9 1021 seen above. (Instagram/bambi_mydear)
In a December 6 tweet, SpaceX further confirmed that the deeply secretive Zuma mission, previously delayed from an early-November launch as a result of concerns about fairing defects, has now been moved from LC-39A to LC-40 and is understood to be targeting January 4 2018. This will give SpaceX approximately three weeks after the launch of CRS-13 to verify that everything is functioning nominally in what is essentially a new pad.
Meanwhile, with Zuma now officially moved to 40, LC-39A is completely free from routine operations, meaning that SpaceX’s ground crew can now work at will to ready the pad for the inaugural launch of Falcon Heavy, now aiming for early 2018. Aside from Falcon Heavy, recent FCC filings point to two additional SpaceX launches aiming for January, although slips are probable in light of CRS-13’s minor delays. Regardless, December and January are likely to be thrilling months for followers of the intrepid space exploration outfit.
Elon Musk
Tesla Giga Berlin growth could stall if not “free from external influences”: Elon Musk
The comments were delivered in a pre-recorded video discussion.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has reportedly warned that future expansion of Gigafactory Berlin could be jeopardized if the site does not remain “free from external influences.”
Musk’s comments were delivered in a pre-recorded video discussion with employees and came at a sensitive moment for the facility, where union representation has been a recurring issue.
According to reports from Handelsblatt and Der Spiegel, citing participants at the event, Musk suggested that if Giga Berlin is no longer “free from external influences,” further expansion would become unlikely. He did not, however, hint that the plant would shut down.
While Musk did not name IG Metall directly, his remarks were widely interpreted as referencing the union, which is currently the largest faction on the works council but does not hold a majority, as noted in an electrive report.
The video conversation was conducted between Musk in Austin and Grünheide plant manager André Thierig, then played back to the workforce in Germany. Works council elections are scheduled for early March, heightening the tension between management and organized labor.
The CEO has previously voiced concerns that stronger union influence could limit Tesla’s operational flexibility and long-term strategy in Germany.
Despite the warning on expansion, Musk praised the Giga Berlin site during the same address, describing it as one of the most advanced factories worldwide and highlighting its cleanliness and team culture.
The discussion also reportedly touched on battery cell production. According to attendees cited in German media, Musk indicated that Tesla has begun ramping cell production at the site. That would mark a notable shift from earlier expectations that large-scale cell manufacturing in Brandenburg would not begin until 2027.
Elon Musk
Tesla Full Self-Driving’s newest behavior is the perfect answer to aggressive cars
According to a recent video, it now appears the suite will automatically pull over if there is a tailgater on your bumper, the most ideal solution for when a driver is riding your bumper.
Tesla Full Self-Driving appears to have a new behavior that is the perfect answer to aggressive drivers.
According to a recent video, it now appears the suite will automatically pull over if there is a tailgater on your bumper, the most ideal solution for when a driver is riding your bumper.
With FSD’s constantly-changing Speed Profiles, it seems as if this solution could help eliminate the need to tinker with driving modes from the person in the driver’s seat. This tends to be one of my biggest complaints from FSD at times.
A video posted on X shows a Tesla on Full Self-Driving pulling over to the shoulder on windy, wet roads after another car seemed to be following it quite aggressively. The car looks to have automatically sensed that the vehicle behind it was in a bit of a hurry, so FSD determined that pulling over and letting it by was the best idea:
Tesla appears to be implementing some sort of feature that will now pull over if someone is tailgating you to let the car by
Really cool feature, definitely get a lot of this from those who think they drive race cars
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) February 26, 2026
We can see from the clip that there was no human intervention to pull over to the side, as the driver’s hands are stationary and never interfere with the turn signal stalk.
This can be used to override some of the decisions FSD makes, and is a great way to get things back on track if the semi-autonomous functionality tries to do something that is either unneeded or not included in the routing on the in-car Nav.
FSD tends to move over for faster traffic on the interstate when there are multiple lanes. On two-lane highways, it will pass slower cars using the left lane. When faster traffic is behind a Tesla on FSD, the vehicle will move back over to the right lane, the correct behavior in a scenario like this.
Perhaps one of my biggest complaints at times with Full Self-Driving, especially from version to version, is how much tinkering Tesla does with Speed Profiles. One minute, they’re suitable for driving on local roads, the next, they’re either too fast or too slow.
When they are too slow, most of us just shift up into a faster setting, but at times, even that’s not enough, see below:
What has happened to Mad Max?
At one point it was going 32 in a 35. Traffic ahead had pulled away considerably https://t.co/bjKvaMVTNX pic.twitter.com/aaZSWmLu5v
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 24, 2026
There are times when it feels like it would be suitable for the car to just pull over and let the vehicle that is traveling behind pass. This, at least up until this point, it appears, was something that required human intervention.
Now, it looks like Tesla is trying to get FSD to a point where it just knows that it should probably get out of the way.
Elon Musk
Tesla Megapack powers $1.1B AI data center project in Brazil
By integrating Tesla’s Megapack systems, the facility will function not only as a major power consumer but also as a grid-supporting asset.
Tesla’s Megapack battery systems will be deployed as part of a 400MW AI data center campus in Uberlândia, Brazil. The initiative is described as one of Latin America’s largest AI infrastructure projects.
The project is being led by RT-One, which confirmed that the facility will integrate Tesla Megapack battery energy storage systems (BESS) as part of a broader industrial alliance that includes Hitachi Energy, Siemens, ABB, HIMOINSA, and Schneider Electric. The project is backed by more than R$6 billion (approximately $1.1 billion) in private capital.
According to RT-One, the data center is designed to operate on 100% renewable energy while also reinforcing regional grid stability.
“Brazil generates abundant energy, particularly from renewable sources such as solar and wind. However, high renewable penetration can create grid stability challenges,” RT-One President Fernando Palamone noted in a post on LinkedIn. “Managing this imbalance is one of the country’s growing infrastructure priorities.”
By integrating Tesla’s Megapack systems, the facility will function not only as a major power consumer but also as a grid-supporting asset.
“The facility will be capable of absorbing excess electricity when supply is high and providing stabilization services when the grid requires additional support. This approach enhances resilience, improves reliability, and contributes to a more efficient use of renewable generation,” Palamone added.
The model mirrors approaches used in energy-intensive regions such as California and Texas, where large battery systems help manage fluctuations tied to renewable energy generation.
The RT-One President recently visited Tesla’s Megafactory in Lathrop, California, where Megapacks are produced, as part of establishing the partnership. He thanked the Tesla team, including Marcel Dall Pai, Nicholas Reale, and Sean Jones, for supporting the collaboration in his LinkedIn post.
Tesla Giga Berlin growth could stall if not “free from external influences”: Elon Musk
Tesla Full Self-Driving’s newest behavior is the perfect answer to aggressive cars
