Connect with us

News

SpaceX Falcon Heavy ‘center core’ passes through Arizona on its way to Texas

Published

on

On the heels SpaceX’s first new Falcon Heavy booster in two years beginning its journey to Florida, another of the rocket’s three first stages was spotted on its way from Hawthorne, California to McGregor, Texas.

Set to be the first Falcon Heavy launch since June 2019, SpaceX is working around the clock to prepare three new first-stage boosters – two side boosters and one ‘center core’ – and an expendable upper stage with a series of static fire acceptance tests at its McGregor, Texas development facilities. Like each of the 60+ Falcon boosters and 110 Falcon upper stages SpaceX has built and launched in the last 11 years, that new Falcon Heavy hardware must pass through a gauntlet of tests before the company deems them fully complete and ready for flight.

Facebook user Jason Miller posted photos of a Falcon Heavy booster on its way to Texas on a SpaceX fan group last week.

Before – or during – the process of actually fabricating and assembling the airframe of Falcon boosters and upper stages, SpaceX first manufactures their respective Merlin 1D (M1D) and Merlin Vacuum (MVac) engines and ships those individual engines to McGregor, Texas for acceptance testing. The McGregor team regularly conducts multiple Merlin and Raptor static fire tests daily, nominally firing each engine for anywhere from a few seconds to six or more minutes to guarantee optimal performance and verify their health.

If issues arise during testing, those engines can often be inspected and fixed by on-site engineers in Texas, but there are also cases where misbehaving hardware will be sent back to Hawthorne for more extensive rework before beginning the static fire process again. Eventually, once engines have passed static fire testing, they are shipped back to Hawthorne and installed on their respective boosters or upper stages.

For both stages, a range of cold gas thrusters used to control a booster or upper stage’s orientation in the vacuum of space are also tested in Texas before before final installation. Ultimately, once all individual component and subsystem tests are completed and the hardware has been returned to Hawthorne and installed, every single Falcon booster and upper stage is then shipped right back to McGregor to repeat even more complex static fire acceptance tests.

Once more, if major issues arise, SpaceX can and has return Falcon stages back to Hawthorne for rework. Otherwise, once static fire testing is completed, boosters and upper stages are shipped directly to one of three SpaceX launch pads in Florida and California. All of that exhaustive, multi-stage testing almost invariably ensures that the hardware that actually reaches launch pads is in pristine condition and truly ready for flight, though issues do still slip through the cracks on occasion.

Advertisement

In other words, the Falcon Heavy ‘center core’ spotted earlier this month is in the late stages of qualification testing and has one final hurdle – an integrated static fire – to pass before SpaceX can ship it to Florida to prepare for flight. That static fire testing process will likely last no less than 4-6 weeks. Falcon Heavy’s fourth launch – a mission known as US Space Force 44 (USSF-44) is currently scheduled to launch no earlier than late May or June 2021.

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

News

Tesla Model 3 filings in China show interesting hardware addition

The addition of a front bumper camera to the Tesla Model 3 is a big upgrade from a hardware perspective.

Published

on

Credit: Tesla Newswire via China's MIIT

Tesla Model 3 filings in China are showing the vehicle could get a very interesting hardware addition, one that was not included on the “Highland” update when it rolled out to customers a year and a half ago.

The Model 3 Highland is Tesla’s updated version of the all-electric sedan, and was launched across the world in early 2024. It featured a variety of updates, including new exterior and interior designs.

However, there were a few things missing from the update that surprised Tesla fans because they were included on other cars.

One of them was the lack of a front bumper camera, a hardware piece that was included on other vehicles within the company’s lineup, including the Model Y Juniper, an updated version of the all-electric crossover that launched earlier this year.

Now, it seems Tesla is preparing to implement that front camera on the Model 3, as new filings with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) showed the car with the addition:

The front bumper camera is a small but powerful addition to Tesla vehicles. It not only enhances visibility for simple tasks like parking, helping avoid things like curbs, but it also helps provide a wider field of view directly in front of the car.

It is also a crucial part of the Full Self-Driving and Autopilot suites, helping provide yet another angle of vision for the vehicle as Tesla makes its suite more robust. It is already improving through software upgrades and data collection, but it could always use additional hardware to enhance accuracy.

A Model 3 Highland test mule was spotted near Boston, Massachusetts, back in May with a variety of additional cameras equipped. Some believed this was a vehicle that was assisting with collecting training data.

Tesla is testing a Model 3 with some mysterious cameras in the U.S.

However, it could be a sign of Tesla planning to add this piece of hardware to a slightly updated version of the new Model 3 that could come to production in various markets in the near future.

Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Tesla CEO Elon Musk details massive FSD update set for September release

“This will substantially reduce the need for driver attention, but some complex intersections, heavy weather or unusual events will still require attention.”

Published

on

Credit: Tesla Asia | X

Tesla CEO Elon Musk detailed the changes that are expected to come with a massive Full Self-Driving (FSD) update, which is set to roll out sometime in September, he revealed earlier this week.

Tesla has been refining its FSD suite for years, but it has never been as good as it is now. The focus is to get the suite to a point where interventions are no longer needed and drivers simply become passengers, as they will not be responsible for paying attention to the road.

Elon Musk teases crazy new Tesla FSD model: here’s when it’s coming

That version of FSD will come eventually, but not next month. However, there are dramatic improvements that will come with next month’s FSD update that will roll out to the public, Musk said:

“The FSD software update next month will be a major step-change improvement for rare conditions.”

Additionally, he provided specific details on what would change, hinting that the need for a driver to pay attention will be “substantially reduced,” but there are some “complex intersections, heavy weather, or unusual events” that will still require drivers to assume responsibility for the car:

“This will substantially reduce the need for driver attention, but some complex intersections, heavy weather or unusual events will still require attention.”

We have been teased about these types of updates before, but usually they involve some kind of mention of FSD being ready for unsupervised driving “by the end of the year.” Musk did not mention that here.

There is also the fact that Tesla has another FSD build in Austin for the Robotaxi suite that is more advanced than what is available to the public. It has performed well, Musk says, making claims that there are times when it feels “eerily human.”

Tesla Q2 2025 vehicle safety report proves FSD makes driving almost 10X safer

The improvements in FSD capabilities in subsequent releases are usually very evident. As Tesla continues to refine the suite for the public, it gains more confidence and becomes smarter through the collection of data and the use of neural networks.

The only thing left to wait for is the release itself, and we are hopeful it will roll out to the public in September, as Musk says.

Continue Reading

News

Tesla Model Y L’s impressive specs surface in China’s recent MIIT filing

The Tesla Model Y L is expected to launch later this year.

Published

on

Credit: Tesla

The specs of the upcoming Tesla Model Y L has appeared in new Chinese regulatory filings, revealing key specifications including a six-seat layout and an extended range of up to 751 kilometers. The variant is expected to launch later this year alongside a new long-range Model 3 variant rated at 830 kilometers.

The updates were listed on the China Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s (MIIT) latest batch of new energy vehicle models that are eligible for vehicle purchase tax exemptions.

Model Y L to debut with larger battery, six-seat layout

Listed under the model code TSL6500BEVBA0, the Model Y L will feature dual motors producing 142 kW at the front and 198 kW at the rear. It will be powered by a 465-kilogram 82.0-kWh lithium-ion battery from LG Energy Solution, with a pack energy density of 176 Wh/kg, as noted in a CNEV Post report. The long-range crossover achieves 751 km on the lenient CLTC cycle, making it Tesla’s highest-range Model Y to date in China despite its curb weight of 2,088 kg.

The “L” designation is believed to refer to the vehicle’s larger size and seating configuration, as the new variant is listed with six seats. It builds on Tesla’s strategy to diversify offerings in the Model Y lineup, which currently includes both RWD and AWD five-seat versions.

Model 3+ breaks record with 830 km CLTC range

Alongside the Model Y L, Tesla China also registered a new rear-wheel-drive Model 3, which was designated with the model code TSL7000BEVBR1. The vehicle boasts either 800 or 830 km of range on the CLTC cycle, depending on its trim. This marks the highest range yet for any Tesla vehicle in China.

The variant will use a 448-kilogram, 78.4-kWh LG-supplied battery with an energy density of 175 Wh/kg and a peak motor output of 225 kW. The vehicle’s curb weight is listed at 1,760 kg. The model was previously identified in filings as “Model 3+,” hinting at a possible tier above the existing long-range variant, which tops out at 753 km CLTC.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending