News
SpaceX, NASA call off Cargo Dragon launch after discovering fuel leak
SpaceX and NASA have decided to call off an imminent Cargo Dragon 2 space station resupply mission after discovering a possible fuel leak while loading the spacecraft with propellant.
As a result, in an event that has become extremely rare for SpaceX, the launch has been indefinitely delayed after a recent series of slips from June 7th to the 9th, 10th, and 12th. Now, NASA says that it has fully stood down from any possible launch attempt this week, pushing CRS-25’s trip to the International Space Station (ISS) to June 13th at the absolute earliest.
“NASA and SpaceX are standing down from this week’s Falcon 9 launch of the CRS-25 cargo mission to the International Space Station. Officials from NASA and SpaceX met today to discuss an issue identified over the weekend and the best path forward.
During propellant loading of the Dragon spacecraft, elevated vapor readings of mono-methyl hydrazine (MMH) were measured in an isolated region of the Draco thruster propulsion system. The propellant and oxidizer have been offloaded from that region to support further inspections and testing. Once the exact source of the elevated readings is identified and cause is determined, the joint NASA and SpaceX teams will determine and announce a new target launch date.”
NASA – June 6th, 2022
The issue appears to have been discovered within the last few days, possibly explaining some of CRS-25’s small delays since May 19th. According to NASA, while loading Dragon with propellant, SpaceX detected “elevated vapor readings” of monomethylhydrazine (MMH) fuel in one “isolated region” related to the spacecraft’s propulsion system. After detecting the anomaly, SpaceX drained that particular section of fuel and oxidizer to allow for further inspections and testing to determine the “exact source” and its cause. Only once the source and cause have been determined will NASA and SpaceX announce a new launch date.
As is often the case with all kinds of rockets and spacecraft, there’s a good chance that the culprit of the unexpected detection of fuel vapors is a misbehaving valve. SpaceX will now need to figure out and fix exactly what went wrong before Cargo Dragon 2 C208 will be allowed to attempt its third orbital resupply mission since December 2020.
Perhaps even more importantly, given just how similar Cargo Dragon 2 is to SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft, the results of that investigation will have ramifications that reach far beyond a lower-risk uncrewed cargo delivery. As has been the case almost every day since November 2020, a Crew Dragon spacecraft is already docked with the ISS as part of an operational NASA astronaut transport mission. Crew-4’s Dragon is scheduled to return the four astronauts it recently carried to the station back to Earth as early as September 2022. A different Crew Dragon is scheduled to launch Crew-5 around the same time.
Given the similarity of all the reusable capsules in SpaceX’s Dragon fleet, there’s an omnipresent risk – however small – that any issue with one spacecraft could be present on all others. But on the opposite side of that sword, even the discovery of a more minor or isolated issue on any of SpaceX’s eight operational Dragon spacecraft – including uncrewed capsules like C208 – can help make the entire fleet safer and more reliable.
For now, CRS-25 has been effectively grounded. SpaceX’s next launch, carrying the Egyptian communications satellite Nilesat-301, is scheduled no earlier than (NET) June 8th.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s Boring Company opens Vegas Loop’s newest station
The Fontainebleau is the latest resort on the Las Vegas Strip to embrace the tunneling startup’s underground transportation system.
Elon Musk’s tunneling startup, The Boring Company, has welcomed its newest Vegas Loop station at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas.
The Fontainebleau is the latest resort on the Las Vegas Strip to embrace the tunneling startup’s underground transportation system.
Fontainebleau Loop station
The new Vegas Loop station is located on level V-1 of the Fontainebleau’s south valet area, as noted in a report from the Las Vegas Review-Journal. According to the resort, guests will be able to travel free of charge to the stations serving the Las Vegas Convention Center, as well as to Loop stations in Encore and Westgate.
The Fontainebleau station connects to the Riviera Station, which is located in the northwest parking lot of the convention center’s West Hall. From there, passengers will be able to access the greater Vegas Loop.
Vegas Loop expansion
In December, The Boring Company began offering Vegas Loop rides to and from Harry Reid International Airport. Those trips include a limited above-ground segment, following approval from the Nevada Transportation Authority to allow surface street travel tied to Loop operations.
Under the approval, airport rides are limited to no more than four miles of surface street travel, and each trip must include a tunnel segment. The Vegas Loop currently includes more than 10 miles of tunnels. From this number, about four miles of tunnels are operational.
The Boring Company President Steve Davis previously told the Review-Journal that the University Center Loop segment, which is currently under construction, is expected to open in the first quarter of 2026. That extension would allow Loop vehicles to travel beneath Paradise Road between the convention center and the airport, with a planned station located just north of Tropicana Avenue.
News
Tesla leases new 108k-sq ft R&D facility near Fremont Factory
The lease adds to Tesla’s presence near its primary California manufacturing hub as the company continues investing in autonomy and artificial intelligence.
Tesla has expanded its footprint near its Fremont Factory by leasing a 108,000-square-foot R&D facility in the East Bay.
The lease adds to Tesla’s presence near its primary California manufacturing hub as the company continues investing in autonomy and artificial intelligence.
A new Fremont lease
Tesla will occupy the entire building at 45401 Research Ave. in Fremont, as per real estate services firm Colliers. The transaction stands as the second-largest R&D lease of the fourth quarter, trailing only a roughly 115,000-square-foot transaction by Figure AI in San Jose.
As noted in a Silicon Valley Business Journal report, Tesla’s new Fremont lease was completed with landlord Lincoln Property Co., which owns the facility. Colliers stated that Tesla’s Fremont expansion reflects continued demand from established technology companies that are seeking space for engineering, testing, and specialized manufacturing.
Tesla has not disclosed which of its business units will be occupying the building, though Colliers has described the property as suitable for office and R&D functions. Tesla has not issued a comment about its new Fremont lease as of writing.
AI investments
Silicon Valley remains a key region for automakers as vehicles increasingly rely on software, artificial intelligence, and advanced electronics. Erin Keating, senior director of economics and industry insights at Cox Automotive, has stated that Tesla is among the most aggressive auto companies when it comes to software-driven vehicle development.
Other automakers have also expanded their presence in the area. Rivian operates an autonomy and core technology hub in Palo Alto, while GM maintains an AI center of excellence in Mountain View. Toyota is also relocating its software and autonomy unit to a newly upgraded property in Santa Clara.
Despite these expansions, Colliers has noted that Silicon Valley posted nearly 444,000 square feet of net occupancy losses in Q4 2025, pushing overall vacancy to 11.2%.
In Pennsylvania, we got between 10 and 12 inches of snow over the weekend as a nasty Winter storm ripped through a large portion of the country, bringing snow to some areas and nasty ice storms to others.
I have had a Model Y Performance for the week courtesy of Tesla, which got the car to me last Monday. Today was my last full day with it before I take it back to my local showroom, and with all the accumulation on it, I decided to run a cool little experiment: How long would it take for Tesla’s Defrost feature to melt 8 inches of snow?
Tesla’s Defrost feature is one of the best and most underrated that the car has in its arsenal. While every car out there has a defrost setting, Tesla’s can be activated through the Smartphone App and is one of the better-performing systems in my opinion.
It has come in handy a lot through the Fall and Winter, helping clear up my windshield more efficiently while also clearing up more of the front glass than other cars I’ve owned.
The test was simple: don’t touch any of the ice or snow with my ice scraper, and let the car do all the work, no matter how long it took. Of course, it would be quicker to just clear the ice off manually, but I really wanted to see how long it would take.
Tesla Model Y heat pump takes on Model S resistive heating in defrosting showdown
Observations
I started this test at around 10:30 a.m. It was still pretty cloudy and cold out, and I knew the latter portion of the test would get some help from the Sun as it was expected to come out around noon, maybe a little bit after.
I cranked it up and set my iPhone up on a tripod, and activated the Time Lapse feature in the Camera settings.
The rest of the test was sitting and waiting.
It didn’t take long to see some difference. In fact, by the 20-minute mark, there was some notable melting of snow and ice along the sides of the windshield near the A Pillar.
However, this test was not one that was “efficient” in any manner; it took about three hours and 40 minutes to get the snow to a point where I would feel comfortable driving out in public. In no way would I do this normally; I simply wanted to see how it would do with a massive accumulation of snow.
It did well, but in the future, I’ll stick to clearing it off manually and using the Defrost setting for clearing up some ice before the gym in the morning.
Check out the video of the test below:
❄️ How long will it take for the Tesla Model Y Performance to defrost and melt ONE FOOT of snow after a blizzard?
Let’s find out: pic.twitter.com/Zmfeveap1x
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 26, 2026
Elon Musk’s Boring Company opens Vegas Loop’s newest station
Tesla leases new 108k-sq ft R&D facility near Fremont Factory
