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SpaceX rapidly turns around drone ship for sixth launch this month

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SpaceX has rapidly turned around one of its two East Coast ‘autonomous spaceport drone ships’ and sent the vessel back to sea to support the sixth and final Falcon 9 launch planned this month.

SpaceX began the month with the successful launch of Transporter-4 – its fourth dedicated smallsat rideshare mission – on April 1st. Axiom-1 – the first all-private astronaut launch to the International Space Station – followed on April 8th. On the West Coast, another Falcon 9 rocket launched SpaceX’s second National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) spy satellite mission in two months on April 17th. Most recently, Falcon 9 booster B1060 tied SpaceX’s current 12-flight reusability record with the successful launch of a batch of Starlink satellites at 1:51 pm EDT on April 21st.

Drone ship Just Read The Instructions (JRTI) was tasked with supporting Falcon 9 booster recovery for Transporter-4 and Starlink 4-14. Now, less than a day after returning to Port Canaveral with booster B1060, the ship has been towed back to sea to support another Starlink launch and landing.

Due to almost two weeks of launch delays caused by Dragon recovery challenges, drone ship A Shortfall Of Gravitas (ASOG) – the second of two East Coast drone ships – has been stuck at sea while waiting to support NASA and SpaceX’s upcoming Crew-4 astronaut launch. To preserve plans for a late-April Starlink mission, SpaceX’s recovery team has needed to move about as fast as they ever have to allow JRTI to take ASOG’s place.

Following Starlink 4-14’s April 21st launch and landing, drone ship JRTI sailed into Port Canaveral around 2am EDT, April 24th. Within minutes of arriving at its usual berth, a dockside crane had swung over and begun installing a lifting cap on top of booster B1060. Less than four hours later, the booster was lifted off of JRTI’s deck and moved onto dry land, freeing up the space it occupied for any necessary inspections or repairs. The quick booster removal also gave SpaceX time to drive the drone ship’s robotic ‘Octagrabber’ recovery robot into a garage on its deck.

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Just after 8pm EDT, less than 16 hours after JRTI reached its berth, support ship Bob towed the converted barge back out to sea. If Starlink 4-16 launches on time on April 29th, Just Read The Instructions will narrowly beat a three-year-old drone ship turnaround record (8d 6h) set by Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) in early 2019; recovering Falcon 9 booster B1062 just 8 days, 3 hours, and 42 minutes after Falcon 9 B1060 – and despite traveling ~1950 km instead of ~1850 km.

Ultimately, that distance is the main reason the current record has survived for so long. Short of building or modifying a new kind of recovery ship with a different type of hull, a flat-bottomed barge – towed or self-propelled – will never be able to traverse hundreds of miles of open ocean at high speeds.

Aside from breaking a potential drone ship turnaround record, Next Spaceflight reports that Starlink 4-16 will also almost certainly beat SpaceX’s current Falcon 9 booster turnaround record. Falcon 9 booster B1062 last launched Axiom-1 at 11:17 am EDT on April 8th. A 5:33 pm EDT, April 29th launch would translate to a turnaround time of 21 days and 6 hours, beating the current record of 27 days and 4 hours – set by B1060 in early 2021 – by more than a quarter.

If Crew-4 launches roughly on time, Starlink 4-14 will be SpaceX’s sixth launch in four weeks and 17th launch of 2022. If the company can sustain that pace over the remaining two-thirds of the year, it could feasibly launch more than 51 times in 2022.

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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.

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Tesla launches “TeslaVision” video contest to celebrate Model Y deliveries

The program marks a revival of Tesla’s popular Project Loveday initiative back in 2017.

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Credit: Tesla/X

Tesla has announced the TeslaVision Contest, a global video showcase inviting fans and owners to highlight the impact of the company’s vehicles on people. 

The program marks a revival of its Project Loveday initiative in 2017, which was extremely well-received by the electric vehicle community. 

A Contest to Celebrate the New Model Y

As per the TeslaVision contest’s official website, the program is being rolled out to commemorate the launch and deliveries of the new Model Y across all continents. Thus, the contest could be seen as a global celebration and showcase of owners and fans who made Tesla the household brand that it has become today.

Participants are tasked with creating a 90-second or shorter video demonstrating how Tesla vehicles provide “more freedom, more safety, more fun, more convenience.” Submissions must be uploaded to YouTube and shared on X and Instagram with the tag @Tesla and the phrase “TeslaVision contest.” 

Videos must align with Tesla’s mission to accelerate sustainable energy, be suitable for all ages, and avoid references to non-Tesla brands. English text or voice-overs are required, and entrants must relinquish rights to their content for Tesla’s commercial use.

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A Big Prize Awaits

When Tesla launched Project Loveday in 2017, the company noted that the contest’s winner would receive an all-expenses paid invitation to an upcoming Tesla product launch. For TeslaVision, the grand prize is a lot more tangible, with the winner receiving a new Model Y AWD. They will also get an all-expenses-paid trip to Gigafactory Texas. Second and third-place winners will also receive the Giga Texas tour. 

Finalists will be selected based on creativity, originality, relevance to the prompt, and entertainment value. Tesla will shortlist 100 videos, with the top 10 subject to public voting to influence the final judging. The contest is open to legal residents of the United States, Mexico, and Canada, aged 18 or older, with a valid driver’s license and Tesla account. No purchase is necessary, though entries are limited to just one per person. 

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Starlink India launch gains traction with telecom license approval  

Starlink just secured its telecom license in India! High-speed satellite internet could go live in 2 months.

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(Credit: Starlink)

Starlink India’s launch cleared a key regulatory hurdle after securing a long-awaited license from the country’s telecom ministry. Starlink’s license approval in India paves the way for commercial operations to begin, marking a significant milestone after a three-year wait.

The Department of Telecommunications granted Starlink a Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite (GMPCS) license, enabling it to roll out its high-speed internet service. Local reports hinted that Starlink plans to launch its services within the next two months. Starlink India’s services are expected to be priced at ₹3,000 per month for unlimited data. Starlink service would require a ₹33,000 hardware kit, including a dish and router.

“Starlink is finally ready to enter the Indian market,” sources familiar with the rollout plans confirmed, noting a one-month free trial for new users.

Starlink’s low-Earth orbit satellite network promises low-latency, high-speed internet that is ideal for rural India, border areas, and hilly terrains. With over 7,000 satellites in orbit and millions of global users, Starlink aims to bridge India’s digital divide, especially in areas with limited traditional broadband.

Starlink has forged distribution partnerships with Indian telecom giants Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel to streamline deployment and retail logistics. However, the company still awaits spectrum allocation and final clearances from India’s space regulator, IN-SPACe, and national security agencies before its full launch, expected before August 2025.

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India’s satellite internet market is becoming increasingly competitive, with Starlink joining rivals like OneWeb and Jio Satellite Communications. While Starlink positions itself as a premium offering, its entry has sparked debate among domestic telecom operators over spectrum pricing.

Local reports noted that other players in the industry have raised concerns over the lower regulatory fees proposed for satellite firms compared to terrestrial operators, highlighting tensions in the sector.

Starlink India’s launch represents a transformative step toward expanding internet access in one of the world’s largest markets. Starlink could redefine connectivity for millions in underserved regions by leveraging its advanced satellite technology and strategic partnerships. As the company navigates remaining regulatory steps, its timely rollout could set a new standard for satellite internet in India, intensifying competition and driving innovation in the telecom landscape.

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xAI supercomputer faces pushback from Memphis politicians

Local leaders in Memphis warn Elon Musk’s xAI hub could pollute local communities, despite Tesla Megapacks now stabilizing power.

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(Credit: xAI)

xAI’s supercomputer in Memphis faces pushback from local leaders and environmental groups over concerns about air pollution despite its promise of economic growth.

xAI’s Memphis facility was touted as the world’s largest supercomputer. It has sparked opposition from the NAACP, Sierra Club, and Mississippi Democratic Party Chairman Cheikh Taylor.

State Rep. Taylor spoke at a Southaven church press conference recently, arguing that the xAI facility in Memphis, Tennessee, would disproportionately harm black residents in north Mississippi.

“In the State of Mississippi, the goal is to separate Republicans and Democrats on race alone. So, if you’re a Democrat in this state, you probably look like me,” Taylor said.

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He also criticized prioritizing economic gains over environmental health, asking, “Can you trust Elon Musk to tell the truth?”

Tennessee State Rep. Justin J. Pearson echoed these concerns, linking the opposition to a broader fight against pollution. “The paltry money xAI has dangled in front of our short-sighted leaders is not worth the cost of breathing dirty and–in some cases–deadly air,” Pearson said.

These local leaders and environmental groups are urging local governments and the Environmental Protection Agency to deny xAI’s air permit applications for 45 to 90 methane gas turbines in the Memphis and Southaven areas.

xAI has not directly addressed the criticism but has taken steps to power its Colossus supercomputer sustainably. Last month, the Greater Memphis Chamber announced that Tesla Megapack batteries would stabilize the facility’s power, with a new 150-megawatt electric substation completing its first construction phase.

“The temporary natural gas turbines that were being used to power the Phase I GPUs prior to grid connection are now being demobilized and will be removed from the site over the next two months,” shared the Chamber.

An additional 160+ Megapacks were delivered to xAI’s Memphis facility for the Colossus 2 data center within the same month.

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Announced in June 2024, the xAI facility was hailed by Greater Memphis Chamber CEO Ted Townsend as the largest capital investment by a new-to-market company in Memphis history. Despite its economic promise, environmental concerns continue to fuel opposition, highlighting tensions between technological innovation and community health in the Deep South’s emerging AI hub.

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