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SpaceX’s Starlink “VisorSat” launch plans revealed by Elon Musk

A totally real mockup of SpaceX's "VisorSat" Starlink upgrade. (SpaceX, edit by Teslarati)

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5 years ago

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CEO Elon Musk has revealed more details about SpaceX’s plans to build and launch upgraded “VisorSat” Starlink satellites, part of the company’s work to ensure that the internet constellation can coexist with astronomy.

Back on April 22nd, Musk gave us the best glimpse yet of what he previously described as a sort of deployable sunshade for Starlink satellites. Designed to prevent orbital sunlight from reflecting off of each spacecraft’s shiny surfaces and disrupting ground-based astronomical observations, the SpaceX CEO said that the company’s very next Starlink launch – scheduled no earlier than “early May” – will carry one or several satellites with said sunshade installed, playfully nicknamed “VisorSat”.

Ultimately, Musk explained in significant detail the likely culprit of the spectacular visibility of Starlink satellites from the ground, discussed plans to reduce or wholly remove that flaring, and explicitly stated that SpaceX will do everything in its power to prevent its constellation from impacting science.

On April 22nd, Musk revealed that the sunshade he’d previously discussed would look “a lot like a car sun visor” and would be built out of dark, radio-transparent foam to avoid disrupting each satellite’s antennas while still preventing sunlight from reflecting off of their mirror-like surfaces.

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During Musk’s surprise April 27th Astro2020 presentation, he revealed a conceptual render of the new VisorSat design. (SpaceX)

Days later, he revealed a rough render of VisorSat’s design, showing an extremely simple pair of rotating foam ‘visors’ explicitly shaped to block sunlight from Starlink satellite antennas and not much else. Given the use of foam and a deployment mechanism no more complex than four actuating hinges, it’s entirely believable that this solution – if it works – could be cheap and light enough to be almost irrelevant for the overall spacecraft.

If it works, SpaceX’s ad hoc visor would effectively be the best possible solution for brightness, fully solving the issue while having a near-zero impact on the cost or functionality of each internet satellite. Of course, SpaceX will do what it’s known for and flight-test the new VisorSat design before getting ahead of itself, but if those tests are successful, it would be unsurprising if every future Starlink satellite features a visor.

However, in the process of explaining why Starlink satellites can appear so bright, Musk also hinted at one of the reasons that a visor alone cannot fully solve all of the sources of Starlink’s ground astronomy impact. After launch, Starlink satellites must raise and circularize their orbits to reach an operational altitude, a process that has typically taken 2-4 weeks. During that orbit-raising phase, Musk revealed that Starlink satellites must orient themselves in such a way that the entirety of their front and rear faces – including the solar array – is angled perfectly to reflect sunlight back to Earth.

To alleviate that issue, Musk has said that SpaceX will tweak the orientation and operation of satellites during the orbit raising period, but it’s difficult to see a way to consistently prevent bright reflections without big changes. If SpaceX can’t immediately find a way around that “Open Book” orientation, there will likely be anywhere from 60-180+ Starlink satellites raising their orbits on any given day if the company truly plans to operate a constellation of ~4400 satellites, let alone ~12,000 or ~40,000.

Once orbit-raising is complete, Musk believes that visors will effectively make Starlink satellites invisible to the naked eye, but more work will have to be done if SpaceX wants to fully mitigate Starlink’s astronomy impact.

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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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Elon Musk

Why Tesla’s Q3 could be one of its biggest quarters in history

Tesla could stand to benefit from the removal of the $7,500 EV tax credit at the end of Q3.

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July 3, 2025

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(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla has gotten off to a slow start in 2025, as the first half of the year has not been one to remember from a delivery perspective.

However, Q3 could end up being one of the best the company has had in history, with the United States potentially being a major contributor to what might reverse a slow start to the year.

Earlier today, the United States’ House of Representatives officially passed President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” after it made its way through the Senate earlier this week. The bill will head to President Trump, as he looks to sign it before his July 4 deadline.

The Bill will effectively bring closure to the $7,500 EV tax credit, which will end on September 30, 2025. This means, over the next three months in the United States, those who are looking to buy an EV will have their last chance to take advantage of the credit. EVs will then be, for most people, $7,500 more expensive, in essence.

The tax credit is available to any single filer who makes under $150,000 per year, $225,000 a year to a head of household, and $300,000 to couples filing jointly.

Ending the tax credit was expected with the Trump administration, as his policies have leaned significantly toward reliance on fossil fuels, ending what he calls an “EV mandate.” He has used this phrase several times in disagreements with Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

Nevertheless, those who have been on the fence about buying a Tesla, or any EV, for that matter, will have some decisions to make in the next three months. While all companies will stand to benefit from this time crunch, Tesla could be the true winner because of its sheer volume.

If things are done correctly, meaning if Tesla can also offer incentives like 0% APR, special pricing on leasing or financing, or other advantages (like free Red, White, and Blue for a short period of time in celebration of Independence Day), it could see some real volume in sales this quarter.

Tesla is just a shade under 721,000 deliveries for the year, so it’s on pace for roughly 1.4 million for 2025. This would be a decrease from the 1.8 million cars it delivered in each of the last two years. Traditionally, the second half of the year has produced Tesla’s strongest quarters. Its top three quarters in terms of deliveries are Q4 2024 with 495,570 vehicles, Q4 2023 with 484,507 vehicles, and Q3 2024 with 462,890 vehicles.

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Tesla Full Self-Driving testing continues European expansion: here’s where

Tesla has launched Full Self-Driving testing in a fifth European country ahead of its launch.

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9 hours ago

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July 3, 2025

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla Full Self-Driving is being tested in several countries across Europe as the company prepares to launch its driver assistance suite on the continent.

The company is still working through the regulatory hurdles with the European Union. They are plentiful and difficult to navigate, but Tesla is still making progress as its testing of FSD continues to expand.

Today, it officially began testing in a new country, as more regions open their doors to Tesla. Many owners and potential customers in Europe are awaiting its launch.

On Thursday, Tesla officially confirmed that Full Self-Driving testing is underway in Spain, as the company shared an extensive video of a trip through the streets of Madrid:

The launch of Full Self-Driving testing in Spain marks the fifth country in which Tesla has started assessing the suite’s performance in the European market.

Across the past several months, Tesla has been expanding the scope of countries where Full Self-Driving is being tested. It has already made it to Italy, France, the Netherlands, and Germany previously.

Tesla has already filed applications to have Full Self-Driving (Supervised) launched across the European Union, but CEO Elon Musk has indicated that this particular step has been the delay in the official launch of the suite thus far.

In mid-June, Musk revealed the frustrations Tesla has felt during its efforts to launch its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) suite in Europe, stating that the holdup can be attributed to authorities in various countries, as well as the EU as a whole:

Tesla Full Self-Driving’s European launch frustrations revealed by Elon Musk

“Waiting for Dutch authorities and then the EU to approve. Very frustrating and hurts the safety of people in Europe, as driving with advanced Autopilot on results in four times fewer injuries! Please ask your governing authorities to accelerate making Tesla safer in Europe.”

Tesla said last year that it planned to launch Full Self-Driving in Europe in 2025.

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xAI’s Memphis data center receives air permit despite community criticism

xAI welcomed the development in a post on its official xAI Memphis account on X.

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11 hours ago

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July 3, 2025

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Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI has secured an air permit from Memphis health officials for its data center project, despite critics’ opposition and pending legal action. The Shelby County Health Department approved the permit this week, allowing xAI to operate 15 mobile gas turbines at its facility.

Air permit granted

The air permit comes after months of protests from Memphis residents and environmental justice advocates, who alleged that xAI violated the Clean Air Act by operating gas turbines without prior approval, as per a report from WIRED. 

The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) and the NAACP has claimed that xAI installed dozens of gas turbines at its new data campus without acquiring the mandatory Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit required for large-scale emission sources.

Local officials previously stated the turbines were considered “temporary” and thus not subject to stricter permitting. xAI applied for an air permit in January 2025, and in June, Memphis Mayor Paul Young acknowledged that the company was operating 21 turbines. SELC, however, has claimed that aerial footage shows the number may be as high as 35.

Critics are not giving up

Civil rights groups have stated that they intend to move forward with legal action. “xAI’s decision to install and operate dozens of polluting gas turbines without any permits or public oversight is a clear violation of the Clean Air Act,” said Patrick Anderson, senior attorney at SELC. 

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“Over the last year, these turbines have pumped out pollution that threatens the health of Memphis families. This notice paves the way for a lawsuit that can hold xAI accountable for its unlawful refusal to get permits for its gas turbines,” he added.

Sharon Wilson, a certified optical gas imaging thermographer, also described the emissions cloud in Memphis as notable. “I expected to see the typical power plant type of pollution that I see. What I saw was way worse than what I expected,” she said.

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