News
SpaceX gets ready to fire up Falcon Heavy for the first time at Cape Canaveral
As it gradually nears a launch date sometime in late January or early February, SpaceX’s new super-heavy launch vehicle (SHLV) Falcon Heavy has weathered a number of schedule delays in preparation for a historic and crucial moment – its first static fire/test ignition that’s currently scheduled for Tuesday, January 16, beginning at 4pm EST (2100 GMT).
Those focused on the gritty details of SpaceX’s prelaunch procedures will have immediately noted how different Falcon Heavy’s operations are when compared with SpaceX’s workhorse rocket and Heavy’s progenitor, Falcon 9. For a typical launch of Falcon 9, the rocket and payload will normally arrive at the given launch pad around a month or so before the anticipated launch date. Next, the satellite payload is encapsulated inside Falcon 9’s payload fairing, typically two or so weeks before launch. Pad facilities would be thoroughly examined after the previous launch to remedy any wear and tear and ensure that it is in good working order ahead of the next mission. Approximately a week before launch, Falcon 9’s first and second stages are mated together inside the pad’s integration facilities, the pad’s Transport/Erector/Launcher (TEL) is rolled into the integration facilities, and the Falcon 9 booster and second stage (sans payload) are mounted onto the TEL. Finally, the TEL and rocket are rolled out to the launch pad for a brief 3-5 second static fire around 5-7 days before launch. After testing is completed, the TEL is rolled back to the integration facilities, the payload fairing and payload are attached to the rocket, and the whole stack is once more rolled back to the pad, ready for launch.
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- The TEL seen at LC-39A in early 2017. (SpaceX)
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- The base of the TEL now sports multiple additional launch clamps (large grey protrusions) that will be needed for Falcon Heavy’s three first stage cores. (SpaceX)
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- Finally, the fairing is transported vertically to the HIF, where it can be flipped horizontal and attached to its rocket. (Reddit /u/St-Jed-of-Calumet)
For a used booster, this is the sum total of the prelaunch procedures it will go through at the pad, after recovery and refurbishment. For all new boosters, however, SpaceX currently conducts a thorough slate of tests for all Merlin 1D and MVac (2nd stage) rocket engines, as well as both the integrated first and second stages at its McGregor, Texas facilities. These tests last far longer than those conducted at the launch pad, and typically run for the full length of a launch in order to better simulate the stresses flight hardware will end up experiencing. In other words, new Falcon 9 hardware always has to make it through hundreds of seconds of live firing and post-test analysis before finally being shipped to SpaceX’s launch facilities, where it conducts the aforementioned brief static fire at the pad.
A whole new bird of prey
To put it simply, Falcon Heavy is a whole different animal when it comes to prelaunch testing. Due to the rocket’s sheer size and power in its fully integrated state, McGregor simply does not have the capability to conduct the same tests it does with Falcon 9. While two of the first Heavy’s three first stage boosters are modified flight-proven Falcon 9s (from Thaicom-8 and CRS-9), the center core required a far more extensive suite of changes from a normal Falcon 9 in order to survive the added stresses it would experience during a Falcon Heavy launch. Although the full-up vehicle could not be tested in Texas with a full-length firing, each of its three first stages and upper stage went through the same tests as a normal Falcon 9. Before that, both side core and center core structural test articles (STA) went through a large amount of mechanical stress testing to verify that Falcon Heavy’s re-engineered design would be able to easily survive the stresses of launch and then some. In short, months and months of work have gone into the hardware that both preceded and makes up the Falcon Heavy rocket currently vertical and weeks from launch at Kennedy Space Center.
However, SpaceX has learned the hard way that simulation and partial physical testing can only go so far, and cannot be completely trusted when it comes to flying new hardware, as evidenced by the both Falcon 1 and the company’s several first attempts at recovering a Falcon 9 booster (intact, at least…). Even the best and most brilliant engineers and technicians can only do so much without testing the real thing in real conditions, something that can often result in unintended failures – especially the case with new technologies. Falcon Heavy is indeed a new technology to some extent or at least incorporates numerous new technologies that SpaceX has little to no operational experience with. These and relatively untried aspects include the simultaneous ignition and operation of twenty seven already powerful Merlin 1D engines, new stresses on the center booster during launch, a unique non-explosive side booster separation mechanism, the also near-simultaneous recovery of three first stages, and a second stage tasked with placing an unusual payload in the highest orbit SpaceX has yet to attempt.
Hence Elon Musk’s aggressive expectation maintenance over the last year or so, in which he spared no punches while imparting upon several audiences the likelihood that Falcon Heavy’s first launch would fail entirely, and maybe even destroy the launch pad. In reality, SpaceX is clearly doing everything in their power to ensure that the massive rocket’s first launch is a total success.
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- Falcon Heavy vertical at Pad 39A on Thursday, January 11. After a successful rehearsal, the static fire was scrubbed due to a small hardware bug. (Tom Cross/Teslarati)
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- The white bars in this photo are half of Falcon Heavy’s seperation mechanism. A number of actuators take the place of the more common solid rocket motors used with vehicles like the Delta IV Heavy. (SpaceX)
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- Falcon Heavy’s three boosters and 27 Merlin 1D engines on full display. (SpaceX)
What’s next for Falcon Heavy?
Recent delays to the vehicle’s first static fire test at SpaceX’s Launch Complex 39A are strong examples of this cautious approach. While fans and outsiders alike may be nipping at the bit for the vehicle’s long-awaited inaugural static fire and launch, SpaceX clearly is laser-focused on very thoroughly testing the vehicle and is exerting great caution. After the first static fire attempt was delayed, reportedly due to a buggy launch clamp, SpaceX had nevertheless completed its first (presumably successful) wet dress rehearsal (WDR), which saw the vehicle prepared for launch with a full load of propellant and other miscellaneous fluids. After a brief period back horizontal at the pad, likely to repair whatever fault initially caused the delay, Falcon Heavy has been vertical at the pad for the last several days. Intriguingly, albeit unsurprisingly, tank venting was reported early Sunday by local observers. This indicates that SpaceX conducted at least one additional wet dress rehearsal with Falcon Heavy, likely both contributing to an additional delay of the replacement static fire date (Monday) and solidifying confidence in the new test date, Tuesday, January 16.
Compared with the results of the first WDR (a three-day delay), the one day delay that followed Sunday’s rehearsal is great news for what is effectively a mature launch vehicle prototype. SpaceX’s confidence is clearly growing, and while all delays of the static fire will likely push back the launch date at least as much, Falcon Heavy will almost certainly find itself days away from its inaugural liftoff sometime in very late January or February 2018.
Follow along live as Teslarati’s launch photographer Tom Cross covers Falcon Heavy’s exciting series of events while they happen on our Instagram.
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Elon Musk
Tesla’s mysterious Robovan makes a sneak peek with Optimus in Terafab video
Elon Musk shared a new Terafab video showing Optimus, Robovans, and a stunningly futuristic campus.
Elon Musk posted a new video of Terafab on X Thursday morning, and the most eye-catching details in it were not the building itself, but two products still awaiting production: Optimus and the Robovan.
The concept render, credited to SpaceX, shows Optimus robots working the grounds of the roughly 2.5-mile-long facility planned for the Gibbons Creek site in Grimes County, while a Robovan glides along an elevated roadway cutting through the building itself, sharing the frame with a Tesla Semi and a Cybercab.
Robovan is the boxy, driverless people and cargo mover Musk unveiled alongside Cybercab at Tesla’s “We, Robot” event in October 2024. He pitched it as a way to move up to 20 passengers at once, or handle freight instead, at a target cost he claimed could fall under a dollar a mile, with no steering wheel or pedals, the same layout as Cybercab. Nearly two years later, Robovan still has no confirmed production timeline and has not shown up in any factory footage, which makes Thursday’s render one of the only recent looks at the vehicle in any form.
Terafab Texas will be the largest and most valuable building on Earth by far.
And it will be stunningly beautiful. pic.twitter.com/4NweOqTL7y
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 6, 2026
Optimus has moved further along. Tesla began converting Fremont’s old Model S and Model X assembly line into a Gen 3 Optimus production line earlier this year, and Musk visited the site on July 1 to mark the changeover. A second, larger Optimus plant is under construction at Giga Texas, targeting volume production in summer 2027 and eventual capacity of 10 million units a year. Tesla AI lead Ashok Elluswamy said this month the robot has “big shoes to fill” in replacing the S and X line, while Musk has repeatedly called Optimus the company’s biggest product of any kind, with a long-term price he has pegged between $20,000 and $30,000.
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Check out the “Robovan” from @Tesla
📸: @Teslarati pic.twitter.com/D4es2i9NUe
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) October 11, 2024
“Terafab Texas will be the largest and most valuable building on Earth by far,” Musk wrote alongside the clip. “And it will be stunningly beautiful.”
One quote post summed up the reaction: “Futuristic scene with RoboVan + Cybercab + Tesla Semi + Optimus.”
Beyond the vehicles, the architecture wrapped around them stands out too. The building’s facade is canted at sharp angles, with illuminated horizontal bands running through what appears to be a multi level interior visible from outside. Below the elevated roadway, pedestrians walk along a plaza next to a reflecting pool, and the skyline behind the campus is dotted with angular spires that read more like sculpture than infrastructure, a departure from the strictly utilitarian look of Gigafactory Texas or Starbase.
The timing tracks with what Terafab representative Riley Trennell told Grimes County residents on Wednesday, when he said renderings of the facility would be released “within days.” Musk’s post followed less than 24 hours later, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s office sent out its own release Thursday confirming the project. As Teslarati reported this morning, Terafab’s tax abatement agreements with Grimes County are now signed and active, and SpaceX has sent the county its first $10 million payment under that deal. The dollar figure tied to this phase of construction, per Reuters, is $16.8 billion, one of the first hard capital expenditure numbers attached to Terafab since Musk unveiled the joint Tesla-SpaceX-xAI venture in March.Reaction on X ranged from enthusiastic to skeptical. “God Bless Texas! Everything is bigger and better in Texas!” one reply read. Another was more measured: “Terafab in a decade…..”
Whether the finished building matches the render is a separate question from whether Musk wanted people talking about the render itself. Less than a day after posting, the video had already crossed 5.5 million views.
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Cybertruck
Tesla Cybertruck production snaps back after ugly supplier fight
Cybertrucks are piling up again at Giga Texas after Tesla’s court win against a parts supplier.
Cybertruck production at Giga Texas is showing its first visible recovery since Tesla sued a supplier last month over withheld manufacturing tooling.
Aerial observer Joe Tegtmeyer flew over the Austin factory Wednesday morning and counted roughly 100 or more Cybertrucks filling the outbound lot, a sharp jump from the thin numbers seen in recent weeks. The flyover came a day after a judge granted Tesla a temporary restraining order against Angstrom Automotive Group, the parts supplier at the center of the dispute.
Tesla filed an emergency lawsuit in late July after Angstrom told the automaker it planned to close the Troy, Texas facility where Tesla’s die-cast tools, trim dies and other Cybertruck stamping equipment were housed. According to Tesla’s complaint, a shipment of 700 finished parts never left the building, and when Tesla sent representatives to retrieve its equipment, accompanied by law enforcement, they were turned away. Angstrom allegedly then asked for an extra $250,000 a week to keep operating, which Tesla’s filing described as holding its own property for ransom.
TESLA: U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Wolfe of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, Waco Division granted Tesla a Temporary Restraining Order and Writ of Replevin in its dispute with Angstrom Automotive (Case No. 6:26-cv-00477).
The order authorizes… https://t.co/E1DKcQSxMn pic.twitter.com/LR8aAiV2Og
— S.E. Robinson, Jr. (@SERobinsonJr) August 5, 2026
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The restraining order gives Tesla immediate right of entry to Angstrom’s facility to recover the tooling. It is temporary, with a fuller hearing still to come, but the speed of Wednesday’s rebound suggests the Angstrom shortage was indeed the main bottleneck limiting Cybertruck output. Outbound lot counts are an imperfect measure of actual production, since finished trucks can sit for days before shipping, but a lot that full after a lean stretch is a meaningful signal.
Cybertruck output at Giga Texas has fluctuated all year as Tesla worked through supply issues and introduced new trims, including a cheaper Dual Motor AWD version that drew strong early demand.
Elon Musk
Space finally faced the people living next to its next Terafab mega-project
SpaceX confirmed Terafab’s Grimes County site is locked in, with construction starting within months.
SpaceX and Terafab representatives sat across from Grimes County residents for the first time on Wednesday, telling a packed Commissioners Court room that the $55 billion chip manufacturing project is now a done deal at the Gibbons Creek Reservoir site.
The meeting followed a $10 million check SpaceX sent the county earlier this week, satisfying a payment deadline built into the tax abatement agreement both sides signed in June. Elon Musk shared a post on X confirming the payment, and County Judge Joe Fauth told the San Antonio Express-News his office deposited the check after it beat its deadline.
Wednesday’s session, first reported by KBTX, moved the project from paperwork to construction. Terafab representative Riley Trennell told residents the JETI tax break agreements with Iola ISD and Anderson-Shiro CISD are signed and active, and that civil work and foundation prep are starting almost immediately. Renderings of the facility could be released within days, he said, with construction beginning within months.
The foundations for an exciting future are being built in Texas. Next up: Terafab → https://t.co/jGg52Zhn5I pic.twitter.com/SNfSXNr2tb
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 6, 2026
Elon Musk launches TERAFAB: The $25B Tesla-SpaceXAI chip factory that will rewire the AI industry
Musk first announced Terafab in March as a joint venture between Tesla, SpaceX and xAI aimed at producing over a terawatt of AI compute annually, an amount that dwarfs the roughly 20 gigawatts the entire global chip industry produces today. Intel joined as a manufacturing partner in April. Musk has said the project needed its own day in the spotlight rather than being squeezed into an earnings call, and for months the Grimes County site remained unconfirmed even as reporting pointed there.
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SpaceX attorney Buck Brannon used Wednesday’s meeting to note that the company’s abatement is roughly 78 percent, not the 100 percent some earlier reports suggested. In exchange, SpaceX will pay Grimes County a fixed $20 million a year for 35 years, a total of $710 million, which Brannon said exceeds the $14 million Tesla paid Travis County in 2025.
SpaceX also addressed environmental concerns that have followed the project since Musk’s Terafab partnership with Intel was announced. Representatives said Terafab will not raise electric bills for other ratepayers, will not deplete local water supplies and will not draw down the Navasota River. SpaceX confirmed it owns the Navasota River pumping station, which it plans to use to divert stormwater into the Gibbons Creek Reservoir, and said it will build its own natural gas plants to power the facility rather than pulling from the ERCOT grid.
Grimes County commissioners also approved an addendum letting county employees use ten approved AI chatbots for work, including Grok.
Tesla’s mysterious Robovan makes a sneak peek with Optimus in Terafab video
Tesla Cybertruck production snaps back after ugly supplier fight
