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SpaceX Starship factory and rocket prototypes weather Texas hurricane

Starship SN5 and SpaceX's South Texas rocket factory have managed to weather their first true Gulf of Mexico hurricane. (NASASpaceflight - bocachicagal)

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SpaceX’s South Texas Starship factory and the latest full-scale rocket prototypes built there have managed to weather their first hurricane and tropical storm.

Known as Hurricane Hanna, the Gulf of Mexico weather system made landfall just a few dozen miles north of SpaceX’s facilities on July 25th with 90 mph (145 km/h) winds recorded. Thankfully, SpaceX’s rocket factory and Starship prototype SN5 were spared from the worst of Hanna, which quickly devolved into a less threatening tropical storm eight hours after landfall.

Still, they were subjected to heavy rain, gusty winds, low visibility, and the threat of much worse conditions if Hurricane Hanna were to veer south. Originally planned on Saturday, July 25th, SpaceX was forced to delay Starship SN5’s first full wet dress rehearsal (WDR) and Raptor engine static fire test, following a solid two weeks of delays unrelated to bad weather.

Weather, rocket, pad, and planet alignment willing, SpaceX may finally have a shot at static firing Starship SN5’s Raptor SN27 engine, installed more than three weeks ago. As of now, Tropical Storm Hanna continues to fade away as it travels west over South Texas and Mexico. Ironically, testing Starship during extreme weather events could actually be a useful activity for SpaceX, given that the launch rates it may eventually need to squeeze out of Super Heavy and Starship will all but necessitate all-weather launch capabilities.

Nevertheless, for early prototypes like SN5, testing during a major storm would do more harm than good by confounding critical data and observations needed to inform future tests and improve newer prototypes. Along those lines, Starship SN5 is now scheduled to attempt a WDR and static fire test no earlier than Monday, July 27th with a window stretching from 8am to 8pm CDT (UTC-5). There is still a chance of moderate rainfall and thunderstorms but Boca Chica should be clear of Hanna-related storm warnings by the time Starship’s test window opens.

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(NASASpaceflight – bocachicagal)

Plans change and Starship SN5’s test plans have been exceptionally fluid, but if the rocket’s static fire goes off as planned on Monday and weather cooperates, there’s a chance that SpaceX will attempt to hop the full-scale prototype just a few days later. According to NASASpaceflight.com, prior to Hurricane Hanna, a rapid static fire and ~150m (~500 ft) hop debut was reportedly in order for Starship SN5.

SpaceX has already sleeved and flipped Starship SN8’s common dome and sleeved its upper oxygen tank dome. (NASASpaceflight – bocachicagal)

Meanwhile, SpaceX and its contractors are in the midst of constructing a massive new vehicle assembly building (VAB; also known as a high bay) required for the imminent start of Super Heavy booster prototype assembly. Work is also well underway on the assembly of Starship SN8, an upgraded prototype that could be the first to receive a nosecone, aerodynamic control surfaces, fully functional header tanks, and three Raptor engines. Those facilities and hardware have also made it through Hurricane Hanna unscathed.

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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

Elon Musk sends stern warning to Tesla vandals, doubters

Elon Musk sent another warning to vandals that have attacked Tesla for political reasons.

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NORAD and USNORTHCOM Public Affairs, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Elon Musk has sent a stern warning to Tesla vandals, doubters, and attackers, who have subjected the company and its owners to political violence through arson and other modes of retaliation.

Over the past few months, Tesla showrooms and vehicles have been hit with numerous attacks from those who have opposed Musk and his political involvement with the Trump Administration. Although Musk has stepped back from his role within government significantly since the start of May, the company is still looked at as a political target.

While the White House has put a clear-cut line on the acts, calling them domestic terrorism and holding those responsible for the damage they have done, there are still numerous and daily instances of keying cars or worse.

Yesterday, Musk continued to send stern warnings to those who oppose Tesla and choose to handle their distaste for the company with violence and vandalism. In a Bloomberg interview at the Qatar Economic Forum, Musk was asked if he took what has happened to Tesla “over the past few months personally.”

Musk replied simply but sternly: “Yes.”

He went on to say that not only will those who vandalized the company and its products owned by consumers be held to the fullest extent of the law, but also those who fund it.

Musk also said during a CNBC interview yesterday that very few people buy a company’s products because of the CEO’s political beliefs, and many people do not even know where those CEOs stand on various social issues.

Although Musk has gone out of his way to be transparent about his beliefs, he has a valid point. He obviously felt that, because of his influence, he held a duty to uphold American values and protect what he felt was an attack on free speech and human rights.

Disagreeing with Musk and his political stances is totally reasonable, but damaging products that consumers bought from his companies is not impacting him directly. Instead, it is making consumers’ lives more difficult.

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Tesla Model 3 gets perfect 5-star Euro NCAP safety rating

Tesla prides itself on producing some of the safest vehicles on the road today.

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Credit: Tesla Singapore/X

Tesla prides itself on producing some of the safest vehicles on the road today. Based on recent findings from the Euro NCAP, the 2025 Model 3 sedan continues this tradition, with the vehicle earning a 5-star overall safety rating from the agency.

Standout Safety Features

As could be seen on the Euro NCAP’s official website, the 2025 Model 3 achieved an overall score of 90% for Adult Occupants, 93% for Child Occupants, 89% for Vulnerable Road Users, and 87% for Safety Assist. This rating, as per the Euro NCAP, applies to the Model 3 Rear Wheel Drive, Long Range Rear Wheel Drive, Long Range All Wheel Drive, and Performance All Wheel Drive.

The Euro NCAP highlighted a number of the Model 3’s safety features, such as its Active Hood, which automatically lifts during collisions to mitigate injury risks to vulnerable road users, and Automatic Emergency Braking System, which now detects motorcycles through an upgraded algorithm. The Euro NCAP also mentioned the Model 3’s feature that prevents initial door opening if someone is approaching the vehicle’s blind spot.

Standout Safety Features

In a post on its official Tesla Europe & Middle East account, Tesla noted that the company is also introducing new features that make the Model 3 even safer than it is today. These include functions like head-on collision avoidance and crossing traffic AEB, as well as Child Left Alone Detection, among other safety features.

“We also introduced new features to improve Safety Assist functionality even further – like head-on collision avoidance & crossing traffic AEB – to detect & respond to potential hazards faster, helping avoid accidents in the first place. 

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“Lastly, we released Child Left Alone Detection – if an unattended child is detected, the vehicle will turn on HVAC & alert caregivers via phone app & the vehicle itself (flashing lights/audible alert). Because we’re using novel in-cabin radar sensing, your Tesla is able to distinguish between adult vs child – reduced annoyance to adults, yet critical safety feature for kids,” Tesla wrote in its post on X.

Below is the Euro NCAP’s safety report on the 2025 Tesla Model 3 sedan.

Euroncap 2025 Tesla Model 3 Datasheet by Simon Alvarez on Scribd

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USDOT Secretary visits Tesla Giga Texas, hints at national autonomous vehicle standards

The Transportation Secretary also toured the factory’s production lines and spoke with CEO Elon Musk.

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Credit: Elon Musk/X

United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) Secretary Sean Duffy recently visited Tesla’s Gigafactory Texas complex, where he toured the factory’s production lines and spoke with CEO Elon Musk. In a video posted following his Giga Texas visit, Duffy noted that he believes there should be a national standard for autonomous vehicles in the United States.

Duffy’s Giga Texas Visit

As could be seen in videos of his Giga Texas visit, the Transportation Secretary seemed to appreciate the work Tesla has been doing to put the United States in the forefront of innovation. “Tesla is one of the many companies helping our country reach new heights. USDOT will be right there all the way to make sure Americans stay safe,” Duffy wrote in a post on X. 

He also praised Tesla for its autonomous vehicle program, highlighting that “We need American companies to keep innovating so we can outcompete the rest of the world.”

National Standard

While speaking with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the Transportation Secretary stated that other autonomous ride-hailing companies have been lobbying for a national standard for self-driving cars. Musk shared the sentiment, stating that “It’d be wonderful for the United States to have a national set of rules for autonomous driving as opposed to 50 independent sets of rules on a state-by-state rules basis.”

Duffy agreed with the CEO’s point, stating that, “You can’t have 50 different rules for 50 different states. You need one standard.” He also noted that the Transportation Department has asked autonomous vehicle companies to submit data. By doing so, the USDOT could develop a standard for the entire United States, allowing self-driving cars to operate in a manner that is natural and safe.

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