News
SpaceX set to launch massive satellite on July 2nd: 3 flights in 9 days
SpaceX’s Next Launch is Still Nearly on Time in Spite of BulgariaSat-1 Delays
As first reported earlier this morning by James Dean of Florida Today and now officially confirmed by the launch customer Intelsat, SpaceX’s launch of Intelsat 35e has been scheduled for July 2nd at 4:36 p.m. PST.
A several day delay of the launch of BulgariaSat-1 from Monday to Friday of last week was logically assumed to mean that the launch of Intelsat 35e, previously scheduled for July 1st, would be delayed at least several days to allow for the necessary pad checks and repairs that occur after launches. In 2017, this pad flow has generally taken at least a full week, with a static fire occurring once the pad is ready, and a launch several days after that. Two weeks has so far been a relatively consistent minimum between launches from the same pad.
A launch from LC-39A on July 2nd would give SpaceX at most nine days from the launch of BulgariaSat-1 to ready the pad once more. Further, Intelsat 35e has a static fire scheduled as early as Thursday this week, six days after the pad’s previous successful launch. I previously wrote about SpaceX potentially conducting three separate missions within the course of two weeks and declared that such an accomplishment would be a massive accomplishment and proof of concept for some of SpaceX’s more lofty goals. Now it would appear that there is a possibility that SpaceX could launch three separate missions in as few as nine days.
Nine days is of course quite close to being a single week, and successfully pulling off what is now officially scheduled would lend unassailable credence to a previous SpaceX goal of regular, weekly cadence by 2019. In fact, three launches in nine days from two separate pads almost makes regular weekly launches from two separate pads appear imminently in reach for the company, possibly even earlier than 2019.
Intelsat 35e will become the largest communications satellite SpaceX has ever sent to orbit, weighing in at ~6000 kilograms. Designed to last at least 15 years in geostationary orbit, it is expected that SpaceX will attempt to place the satellite into a higher energy geostationary transfer orbit in order to reduce the amount of time it takes the commsat to reach its final planned orbit. This translates to an expendable Falcon 9 Full Thrust that will pushed close to its payload and orbit limits. While it is now somewhat sad to see a Falcon 9 first stage unable to attempt recovery, this will still be a thoroughly exciting launch, especially considering the impressive mass of the satellite.
Another successful recovery for 1029 on June 23, 2017. Note the dramatic lean and differing angles of the legs on the left, courtesy of a very hard landing. (SpaceX)
SpaceX’s constant iteration of Falcon 9 vehicles meant that Intelsat 35e did not have to wait for Falcon Heavy, as the current default version of the Falcon 9 (v1.2) has begun to overlap the original performance estimates for the first Falcon Heavy concept. Of note, the vehicles that launched last weekend have approximately double the lifting capacity of the original Falcon 9, which last flew in 2013.
The static fire for the launch of Iridium 35e is currently scheduled for this Thursday. Check back at Teslarati for confirmation of that test as we find ourselves once more just a handful of days away from yet another SpaceX launch.
Tesla has added the 15th automaker to the growing list of companies whose EVs can utilize the Supercharger Network this year, as BMW is the latest company to gain access to the largest charging infrastructure in the world.
BMW became the 15th company in 2025 to gain Tesla Supercharger access, after the company confirmed to its EV owners that they could use any of the more than 25,000 Supercharging stalls in North America.
Welcome @BMW owners.
Download the Tesla app to charge → https://t.co/vnu0NHA7Ab
— Tesla Charging (@TeslaCharging) December 10, 2025
Newer BMW all-electric cars, like the i4, i5, i7, and iX, are able to utilize Tesla’s V3 and V4 Superchargers. These are the exact model years, via the BMW Blog:
- i4: 2022-2026 model years
- i5: 2024-2025 model years
- 2026 i5 (eDrive40 and xDrive40) after software update in Spring 2026
- i7: 2023-2026 model years
- iX: 2022-2025 model years
- 2026 iX (all versions) after software update in Spring 2026
With the expansion of the companies that gained access in 2025 to the Tesla Supercharger Network, a vast majority of non-Tesla EVs are able to use the charging stalls to gain range in their cars.
So far in 2025, Tesla has enabled Supercharger access to:
- Audi
- BMW
- Genesis
- Honda
- Hyundai
- Jaguar Land Rover
- Kia
- Lucid
- Mercedes-Benz
- Nissan
- Polestar
- Subaru
- Toyota
- Volkswagen
- Volvo
Drivers with BMW EVs who wish to charge at Tesla Superchargers must use an NACS-to-CCS1 adapter. In Q2 2026, BMW plans to release its official adapter, but there are third-party options available in the meantime.
They will also have to use the Tesla App to enable Supercharging access to determine rates and availability. It is a relatively seamless process.
News
Tesla adds new feature that will be great for crowded parking situations
This is the most recent iteration of the app and was priming owners for the slowly-released Holiday Update.
Tesla has added a new feature that will be great for crowded parking lots, congested parking garages, or other confusing times when you cannot seem to pinpoint where your car went.
Tesla has added a new Vehicle Locator feature to the Tesla App with App Update v4.51.5.
This is the most recent iteration of the app and was priming owners for the slowly-released Holiday Update.
While there are several new features, which we will reveal later in this article, perhaps one of the coolest is that of the Vehicle Locator, which will now point you in the direction of your car using a directional arrow on the home screen. This is similar to what Apple uses to find devices:
Interesting. The location arrow in the Tesla app now points to your car when you’re nearby. pic.twitter.com/b0yjmwwzxN
— Whole Mars Catalog (@wholemars) December 7, 2025
In real time, the arrow gives an accurate depiction of which direction you should walk in to find your car. This seems extremely helpful in large parking lots or unfamiliar shopping centers.
Getting to your car after a sporting event is an event all in itself; this feature will undoubtedly help with it:
The nice little touch that Tesla have put in the app – continuous tracking of your vehicle location relative to you.
There’s people reporting dizziness testing this.
To those I say… try spinning your phone instead. 😉 pic.twitter.com/BAYmJ3mzzD
— Some UK Tesla Guy (UnSupervised…) (@SomeUKTeslaGuy) December 8, 2025
Tesla’s previous app versions revealed the address at which you could locate your car, which was great if you parked on the street in a city setting. It was also possible to use the map within the app to locate your car.
However, this new feature gives a more definitive location for your car and helps with the navigation to it, instead of potentially walking randomly.
It also reveals the distance you are from your car, which is a big plus.
Along with this new addition, Tesla added Photobooth features, Dog Mode Live Activity, Custom Wraps and Tints for Colorizer, and Dashcam Clip details.
🚨 Tesla App v4.51.5 looks to be preparing for the Holiday Update pic.twitter.com/ztts8poV82
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 8, 2025
All in all, this App update was pretty robust.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk shaded Waymo in a post on X on Wednesday, stating the company “never really had a chance” and that it “will be obvious in hindsight.”
Tesla and Waymo are the two primary contributors to the self-driving efforts in the United States, with both operating driverless ride-hailing services in the country. Tesla does have a Safety Monitor present in its vehicles in Austin, Texas, and someone in the driver’s seat in its Bay Area operation.
Musk says the Austin operation will be completely void of any Safety Monitors by the end of the year.
🚨 Tesla vs. Waymo Geofence in Austin https://t.co/A6ffPtp5xv pic.twitter.com/mrnL0YNSn4
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) December 10, 2025
With the two companies being the main members of the driverless movement in the U.S., there is certainly a rivalry. The two have sparred back and forth with their geofences, or service areas, in both Austin and the Bay Area.
While that is a metric for comparison now, ultimately, it will not matter in the coming years, as the two companies will likely operate in a similar fashion.
Waymo has geared its business toward larger cities, and Tesla has said that its self-driving efforts will expand to every single one of its vehicles in any location globally. This is where the true difference between the two lies, along with the fact that Tesla uses its own vehicles, while Waymo has several models in its lineup from different manufacturers.
The two also have different ideas on how to solve self-driving, as Tesla uses a vision-only approach. Waymo relies on several things, including LiDAR, which Musk once called “a fool’s errand.”
This is where Tesla sets itself apart from the competition, and Musk highlighted the company’s position against Waymo.
Jeff Dean, the Chief Scientist for Google DeepMind, said on X:
“I don’t think Tesla has anywhere near the volume of rider-only autonomous miles that Waymo has (96M for Waymo, as of today). The safety data is quite compelling for Waymo, as well.”
Musk replied:
“Waymo never really had a chance against Tesla. This will be obvious in hindsight.”
Waymo never really had a chance against Tesla. This will be obvious in hindsight.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 10, 2025
Tesla stands to have a much larger fleet of vehicles in the coming years if it chooses to activate Robotaxi services with all passenger vehicles. A simple Over-the-Air update will activate this capability, while Waymo would likely be confined to the vehicles it commissions as Robotaxis.
Tesla adds 15th automaker to Supercharger access in 2025
Tesla adds new feature that will be great for crowded parking situations
