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SpaceX Starship landing leg upgrades imagined in new fan renders

Future SpaceX Starship prototypes will need a substantially improved landing leg design to avoid issues that have threatened past prototypes and (in part) destroyed SN10. (NASASpaceflight - bocachicagal)

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After new official Starship renders appeared to include the first view of an upgraded landing leg design, a SpaceX fan and digital artist took it upon themselves to sketch out what those new rocket legs might look like.

For almost a full year, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has been talking about a need for upgraded Starship landing legs and the challenges posed by that seemingly straightforward goal. Now, after Starship SN10 narrowly became the first prototype to land in one piece, and do so in spite of malfunctioning legs, a new design capable of significantly improving reliability, stability, and toughness has likely become a front-and-center priority.

https://twitter.com/TerminalCount/status/1367261799293272068

Notably, during SN10’s spectacular landing, at least two or three of the Starship’s six flip-out landing legs failed to properly deploy, leaving just a half to two thirds of the legs needed to fully withstand the momentum of a Starship landing. Starship SN10 didn’t make it easy on those remaining legs, either, and was still traveling at least 15-20 mph (6-8 m/s) at touchdown. As a result, Starship crushed those legs into oblivion, leaving the rocket more or less resting on its skirt with no more than a few inches of ground clearance, if anything.

About eight minutes later, the prototype violently depressurized, producing a massive fireball as any remaining propellant flashed into gas and ignited. It’s unclear if that post-landing explosion was caused – in part or full – by SN10’s landing leg failures or if the rocket was more or less doomed before touchdown by some other technical bug. Regardless the flight test was still a spectacular and historic success for SpaceX, while simultaneously shedding light on shortcomings that can be addressed with Starship SN11 and beyond.

As it turns out, mere hours prior to Starship SN10’s successful launch, landing, and self-destruction, a series of new, official SpaceX renders released as part of an update for a private Starship launch around the Moon may have revealed the latest glimpse of an updated landing leg design.

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Notably, the updated design – at least insofar as Erc X’s concepts are within the vicinity of the ground truth – is reminiscent of an earlier leg concept SpaceX revealed in April 2020 as part of a NASA announcement. Around that time, SpaceX – third fiddle to Dynetics and a Blue Origin-led team – won funds to begin the process of designing and building a Starship variant capable of landing NASA astronauts on the Moon in the mid-2020s.

Lunar Starship vs. its more general-purpose crew variant. (SpaceX)
A newer render hints at a possible Starship landing leg design update, moving from six narrow legs to four wide platforms. (SpaceX)

As the fan renders show, there are many different possible landing leg configurations that could feasibly fit into the curious trapezoidal shrouds visible on SpaceX’s latest official Starship renders. Knowing SpaceX and its CEO, it’s also possible – if not likely – that these latest renders are already months old and one or several versions outdated.

Either way, given Starship SN10’s successful landing and progress with Starships SN11 and SN15 thru SN18,, it’s safe to say that significantly upgraded landing legs could start appearing at SpaceX’s Boca Chica, Texas factory any day now

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 its new branded Supercharger for Business with first active station

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla has officially launched its first branded Supercharger just months after initiating a new program that allows third-party companies to brand their own charging piles.

The site opened in Land O’ Lakes, Florida, and features eight V4 Supercharging stalls offering up to 325 kW of charging speed. It appears it was purchased by a company called Suncoast Credit Union. This particular branch is located Northeast of Tampa, which is on the Gulf of Mexico.

It features graphics of Florida animals, like alligators:

Tesla launched this program back in September, and it basically was a way to expand its Supercharger presence and also allow companies to pay for the infrastructure. Tesla maintains it. When it announced the “Supercharger for Business,” it said:

“Purchase and install Superchargers at your business. Superchargers are compatible with all electric vehicles, bringing EV drivers to your business by offering convenient, reliable charging.”

The program does a few things. Initially, it expands EV charging infrastructure and makes charging solutions more readily available for drivers. It can also attract people to those businesses specifically.

Tesla launches new Supercharger program that business owners will love

The chargers can also be branded with any logo that the business chooses, which makes them more personalized and also acts as an advertisement.

The best part is that the customers do not have to maintain anything about the Supercharger. Tesla still takes care of it and resolves any issues:

“We treat your site like we treat our sites. By providing you with a full-service package that includes network operations, preventative maintenance, and driver support, we’re able to guarantee 97% uptime–the highest in the industry.”

It appears the Superchargers will also appear within the in-car nav during routing, so they’ll be publicly available to anyone who needs to use them. They are still available to all EVs that have worked with Tesla to utilize its infrastructure, and they are not restricted to people who are only visiting the business.

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Tesla reveals its Cybertruck light bar installation fix

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u/Kruzat, see page for license, via Wikimedia Commons

Tesla has revealed its Cybertruck light bar installation fix after a recall exposed a serious issue with the accessory.

Tesla and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) initiated a recall of 6,197 Cybertrucks back in October to resolve an issue with the Cybertruck light bar accessory. It was an issue with the adhesive that was provided by a Romanian company called Hella Romania S.R.L.

Tesla recalls 6,197 Cybertrucks for light bar adhesive issue

The issue was with the primer quality, as the recall report from the NHTSA had stated the light bar had “inadvertently attached to the windshield using the incorrect surface primer.”

Instead of trying to adhere the light bar to the Cybertruck with an adhesive, Tesla is now going to attach it with a bracketing system, which will physically mount it to the vehicle instead of relying on adhesive strips or glue.

Tesla outlines this in its new Service Bulletin, labeled SB-25-90-001, (spotted by Not a Tesla App) where it shows the light bar will be remounted more securely:

The entire process will take a few hours, but it can be completed by the Mobile Service techs, so if you have a Cybertruck that needs a light bar adjustment, it can be done without taking the vehicle to the Service Center for repair.

However, the repair will only happen if there is no delamination or damage present; then Tesla could “retrofit the service-installed optional off-road light bar accessory with a positive mechanical attachment.”

The company said it would repair the light bar at no charge to customers. The light bar issue was one that did not result in any accidents or injuries, according to the NHTSA’s report.

This was the third recall on Cybertruck this year, as one was highlighted in March for exterior trim panels detaching during operation. Another had to do with front parking lights being too bright, which was fixed with an Over-the-Air update last month.

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Tesla is already expanding its Rental program aggressively

The program has already launched in a handful of locations, specifically, it has been confined to California for now. However, it does not seem like Tesla has any interest in keeping it restricted to the Golden State.

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Credit: Grok

Tesla is looking to expand its Rental Program aggressively, just weeks after the program was first spotted on its Careers website.

Earlier this month, we reported on Tesla’s intention to launch a crazy new Rental program with cheap daily rates, which would give people in various locations the opportunity to borrow a vehicle in the company’s lineup with some outrageous perks.

Along with the cheap rates that start at about $60 per day, Tesla also provides free Full Self-Driving operation and free Supercharging for the duration of the rental. There are also no limits on mileage or charging, but the terms do not allow the renter to leave the state from which they are renting.

The program has already launched in a handful of locations, specifically, it has been confined to California for now. However, it does not seem like Tesla has any interest in keeping it restricted to the Golden State.

Job postings from Tesla now show it is planning to launch the Rental program in at least three new states: Texas, Tennessee, and Massachusetts.

The jobs specifically are listed as a Rental Readiness Specialist, which lists the following job description:

“The Tesla Rental Program is looking for a Rental Readiness Specialist to work on one of the most progressive vehicle brands in the world. The Rental Readiness Specialist is a key contributor to the Tesla experience by coordinating the receipt of incoming new and used vehicle inventory. This position is responsible for fleet/lot management, movement of vehicles, vehicle readiness, rental invoicing, and customer hand-off. Candidates must have a high level of accountability, and personal satisfaction in doing a great job.”

It also says that those who take the position will have to charge and clean the cars, work with clients on scheduling pickups and drop-offs, and prepare the paperwork necessary to initiate the rental.

The establishment of a Rental program is big for Tesla because it not only gives people the opportunity to experience the vehicles, but it is also a new way to rent a car.

Just as the Tesla purchasing process is more streamlined and more efficient than the traditional car-buying experience, it seems this could be less painful and a new way to borrow a car for a trip instead of using your own.

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