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SpaceX prepares Falcon 9 booster for eleventh launch and landing [webcast]
SpaceX has confirmed that Falcon 9 is on track to launch another batch of Starlink satellites less than 48 hours after a successful United Launch Alliance Atlas V from a pad just two miles south.
Falcon 9 is now scheduled to launch Starlink 4-9 from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Launch Complex 39A no earlier than (NET) 9:35 am EST (14:35 UTC) on Thursday, March 3rd. Oddly, unlike Starlink 4-8, which successfully launched 46 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO) on February 21st, Starlink 4-9 – following a seemingly identical trajectory – will carry 47 satellites. The reason for the small difference is unclear.
Last month, SpaceX suffered a significant anomaly when a “geomagnetic storm” warmed Earth’s atmosphere, causing 38 of 49 just-launched Starlink 4-7 satellites to prematurely reenter and burn up. In response, while SpaceX hasn’t officially confirmed the change, it appears that all subsequent Starlink missions are being launched to slightly higher parking orbits. In comparison, Starlink 4-4 – a West Coast mission – launched 52 satellites into a 340 x 210 kilometer (210 x 130 mi) parking orbit in December 2021. Starlink 4-7, an East Coast mission, launched 49 satellites into a 336 x 210 km parking orbit on February 3rd, losing three satellites to account for extra performance needed to safely dodge the Bahamas.
Following Starlink 4-7’s space weather calamity, SpaceX – using an identical trajectory – launched 46 Starlink 4-8 satellites (three fewer than 4-7) from the East Coast into a higher 337 x 325 km parking orbit on February 21st. On February 25th, SpaceX also launched 50 Starlink 4-11 satellites (a reduction of two) from the West Coast into a higher 316 x 306 km parking orbit. In short, after Starlink 4-7, SpaceX appears to be sacrificing a few Starlink satellites to launch to parking orbits that are slightly higher and thus slightly more stable.
In theory, this should entirely prevent a repeat of the Starlink 4-7 anomaly while only marginally increasing the amount of time it should take dead-on-arrival satellites to reenter. While doing so increases the number of satellites Falcon 9 can launch, the main reason SpaceX launches Starlink satellites to such low orbits is to ensure that any failed satellites reenter a matter of days to a few weeks after launch instead of the years it could take at their operational ~550 km (~340 mi) orbits.
Of course, that doesn’t explain why Starlink 4-9 is projected to launch one more Starlink satellite than Starlink 4-8. It’s possible that SpaceX is refining its new insertion orbit on the fly and that Starlink 4-9 is headed to a slightly lower destination after data gathered from 4-8 and 4-11. It’s also possible that SpaceX is tweaking some other aspect of Falcon 9’s mission profile or even modifying Starlink satellites (i.e. adding or subtracting mass) – neither of which would be out of the ordinary for the company.
Regardless, Starlink 4-9 is interesting for a few more reasons. First, it will mark drone ship Just Read The Instruction’s (JRTI) first recovery mission since a mistake made by its onboard Octagrabber rocket nearly lead to the loss of an entire Falcon 9 booster in December 2021. That implies that SpaceX has fully determined and rectified the cause of that anomaly and repaired both the drone ship and its robot. To reach its full launch cadence potential, SpaceX needs at least two operational drone ships on the East Coast. Otherwise, in lieu of rare low-performance missions that allow Falcon 9 boosters to fly back to land, SpaceX can only launch one East Coast Falcon 9 mission every 10 or so days and can’t support Falcon Heavy launches that require two at-sea booster landings.
Additionally, SpaceX has confirmed that Falcon 9 B1060 will launch Starlink 4-9. The mission will be its 11th launch and landing attempt, hopefully making it the third Falcon 9 booster to successfully support 11 orbital-class launches after B1051 and B1058. Together, that means that 3 (15%) of the 19 Falcon 9 Block 5 boosters SpaceX has debuted will have singlehandedly supported 33 (37%) of the 89 Falcon 9 launches the company has completed since May 2018. It’s difficult to imagine a more resounding affirmation of SpaceX’s work on reusability.
Tune in to SpaceX Starlink 4-9 webcast around 9:20 am EST (14:20 UTC) on Thursday, March 3rd to watch the launch live.
News
Tesla wins FCC approval for wireless Cybercab charging system
The decision grants Tesla a waiver that allows the Cybercab’s wireless charging system to be installed on fixed outdoor equipment.
Tesla has received approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to use Ultra-Wideband (UWB) radio technology in its wireless EV charging system.
The decision grants Tesla a waiver that allows the Cybercab’s wireless charging system to be installed on fixed outdoor equipment. This effectively clears a regulatory hurdle for the company’s planned wireless charging pad for the autonomous two-seater.
Tesla’s wireless charging system is described as follows in the document: “The Tesla positioning system is an impulse UWB radio system that enables peer-to-peer communications between a UWB transceiver installed on an electric vehicle (EV) and a second UWB transceiver installed on a ground-level pad, which could be located outdoors, to achieve optimal positioning for the EV to charge wirelessly.”
The company explained that Bluetooth is first used to locate the charging pad. “Prior to the UWB operation, the vehicular system uses Bluetooth technology for the vehicle to discover the location of the ground pad and engage in data exchange activities (which is not subject to the waiver).”
Once the vehicle approaches the pad, the UWB system briefly activates. “When the vehicle approaches the ground pad, the UWB transceivers will operate to track the position of the vehicle to determine when the optimal position has been achieved over the pad before enabling wireless power charging.”
Tesla also emphasized that “the UWB signals occur only briefly when the vehicle approaches the ground pad; and mostly at ground level between the vehicle and the pad,” and that the signals are “significantly attenuated by the body of the vehicle positioned over the pad.”
As noted by Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt, the FCC ultimately granted Tesla’s proposal since the Cybercab’s wireless charging system’s signal is very low power, it only turns on briefly while parking, it works only at very short range, and it won’t interfere with other systems.
While the approval clears the way for Tesla’s wireless charging plans, the Cybercab does not appear to depend solely on the new system.
Cybercab prototypes have frequently been spotted charging at standard Tesla Superchargers across the United States. This suggests the vehicle can easily operate within Tesla’s existing charging network even as the wireless system is developed and deployed. With this in mind, it would not be surprising if the first batches of the Cybercab that are deployed and delivered to consumers end up being charged by regular Superchargers.
Elon Musk
Tesla posts updated FSD safety stats as owners surpass 8 billion miles
Tesla shared the milestone as adoption of the system accelerates across several markets.
Tesla has posted updated safety stats for Full Self-Driving Supervised. The results were shared by the electric vehicle maker as FSD Supervised users passed more than 8 billion cumulative miles.
Tesla shared the milestone in a post on its official X account.
“Tesla owners have now driven >8 billion miles on FSD Supervised,” the company wrote in its post on X. Tesla also included a graphic showing FSD Supervised’s miles driven before a collision, which far exceeds that of the United States average.
The growth curve of FSD Supervised’s cumulative miles over the past five years has been notable. As noted in data shared by Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt, annual FSD (Supervised) miles have increased from roughly 6 million in 2021 to 80 million in 2022, 670 million in 2023, 2.25 billion in 2024, and 4.25 billion in 2025. In just the first 50 days of 2026, Tesla owners logged another 1 billion miles.
At the current pace, the fleet is trending towards hitting about 10 billion FSD Supervised miles this year. The increase has been driven by Tesla’s growing vehicle fleet, periodic free trials, and expanding Robotaxi operations, among others.
Tesla also recently updated the safety data for FSD Supervised on its website, covering North America across all road types over the latest 12-month period.
As per Tesla’s figures, vehicles operating with FSD Supervised engaged recorded one major collision every 5,300,676 miles. In comparison, Teslas driven manually with Active Safety systems recorded one major collision every 2,175,763 miles, while Teslas driven manually without Active Safety recorded one major collision every 855,132 miles. The U.S. average during the same period was one major collision every 660,164 miles.
During the measured period, Tesla reported 830 total major collisions with FSD (Supervised) engaged, compared to 16,131 collisions for Teslas driven manually with Active Safety and 250 collisions for Teslas driven manually without Active Safety. Total miles logged exceeded 4.39 billion miles for FSD (Supervised) during the same timeframe.
Elon Musk
The Boring Company’s Music City Loop gains unanimous approval
After eight months of negotiations, MNAA board members voted unanimously on Feb. 18 to move forward with the project.
The Metro Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA) has approved a 40-year agreement with Elon Musk’s The Boring Company to build the Music City Loop, a tunnel system linking Nashville International Airport to downtown.
After eight months of negotiations, MNAA board members voted unanimously on Feb. 18 to move forward with the project. Under the terms, The Boring Company will pay the airport authority an annual $300,000 licensing fee for the use of roughly 933,000 square feet of airport property, with a 3% annual increase.
Over 40 years, that totals to approximately $34 million, with two optional five-year extensions that could extend the term to 50 years, as per a report from The Tennesean.
The Boring Company celebrated the Music City Loop’s approval in a post on its official X account. “The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority has unanimously (7-0) approved a Music City Loop connection/station. Thanks so much to @Fly_Nashville for the great partnership,” the tunneling startup wrote in its post.
Once operational, the Music City Loop is expected to generate a $5 fee per airport pickup and drop-off, similar to rideshare charges. Airport officials estimate more than $300 million in operational revenue over the agreement’s duration, though this projection is deemed conservative.
“This is a significant benefit to the airport authority because we’re receiving a new way for our passengers to arrive downtown at zero capital investment from us. We don’t have to fund the operations and maintenance of that. TBC, The Boring Co., will do that for us,” MNAA President and CEO Doug Kreulen said.
The project has drawn both backing and criticism. Business leaders cited economic benefits and improved mobility between downtown and the airport. “Hospitality isn’t just an amenity. It’s an economic engine,” Strategic Hospitality’s Max Goldberg said.
Opponents, including state lawmakers, raised questions about environmental impacts, worker safety, and long-term risks. Sen. Heidi Campbell said, “Safety depends on rules applied evenly without exception… You’re not just evaluating a tunnel. You’re evaluating a risk, structural risk, legal risk, reputational risk and financial risk.”
Tesla wins FCC approval for wireless Cybercab charging system
Tesla posts updated FSD safety stats as owners surpass 8 billion miles
