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SpaceX, ULA aim for back-to-back Starlink, spaceplane rocket launches

SpaceX and ULA are hoping to perform Falcon 9 and Atlas V launches within ~20 hours of each other later this week. (Richard Angle/Boeing)

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SpaceX and ULA are just four days away from a ~20-hour period that could see them attempt back-to-back launches of their respective workhorse rockets, potentially sending both Starlink satellites and a US military space plane into orbit.

If successful, the two missions would mark the fastest turnaround for launches performed by the two competing companies from the same coast, a testament to improvements made by the US Air Force (now Space Force) outfits that operate the range. The ultimate goal of those upgrades is to enable up to 40 annual orbital-class launches from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) pads – a cadence not seen in the US since the 1960s.

As of now, the United Launch Alliance (ULA) is tracking towards 8-10:30 am EDT, May 16th for the sixth launch of Boeing’s small X-37B spaceplane, used by the military for orbital experiments and other more mysterious purposes. SpaceX’s eighth launch of 60 Starlink satellites could follow as few as 20 hours later at approximately 4 am EDT, May 17th, carrying the next batch of operational internet satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO).

60 Starlink satellites depart Falcon 9’s spinning upper stage on April 22nd. (SpaceX)

Aside from a potentially impressive back-to-back launch from the United States’ only two commercial orbital launch providers, SpaceX’s Starlink-7 mission is also expected to include several important milestones for reusable rocketry and the company’s rapidly-growing satellite constellation. Notably, SpaceX and CEO Elon Musk have recently stated that the mission will be the first launch of Starlink satellites with a prototype ‘visor’ designed to make each spacecraft nearly invisible from the ground.

A render of SpaceX’s so-called ‘VisorSat’. (SpaceX)

If SpaceX’s so-called VisorSat prototypes are successful, the company plans to outfit all future Starlink satellites with visors. Additionally, the Starlink-7 spacecraft will be the first to trial a new approach to satellite orientation en masse, a change also designed to mitigate the constellation’s impact on ground-based astronomy. By angling satellites in such a way that they give very little surface area for sunlight to reflect off of, SpaceX could potentially decrease or fully remove ground reflections from orbiting satellites, useful even if only temporary.

SpaceX’s Starlink satellites can produce truly spectacular and inspiring views when flying overhead, although that same visibility can disrupt some astronomy. (Richard Angle)

Additionally, SpaceX is set to launch – and attempt to land – Falcon 9 booster B1049 for the fifth time in support of Starlink-7, only the second time an orbital-class booster has flown five times. If B1049 is able to stick a landing aboard drone ship Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY), Starlink-7 will also mark the first time a SpaceX booster has completed five landings, also setting B1049 up to become the first booster to attempt its sixth launch in the near future.

B1048 was unfortunately lost to a mid-launch anomaly that also prevented the rocket from successfully landing. (Pauline Acalin, SpaceX, Tom Cross, Richard Angle)
B1049 completed its fourth launch, landing, and recovery in early-January 2020. (Richard Angle)

As always, delays are par for the course in the world of orbital launches, so it’s possible that one of the two launches scheduled on May 16th and 17th will slip. After Starlink-7, SpaceX’s next orbital launch – Crew Dragon’s Demo-2 NASA astronaut launch debut – is perhaps the most important mission in the company’s 18 year history and is scheduled to lift off no earlier than (NET) May 27th.

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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 unveils juicy new detail on the Roadster and hints at new unveil timeline

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A red Tesla Roadster driving around a turn
(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla unveiled a juicy new detail on the Roadster, its long-delayed supercar project, and additionally hinted at a new unveiling timeline, as it appears yet another month will pass without seeing the capabilities of the vehicle.

Vice President of Vehicle Engineering at Tesla, Lars Moravy, revealed on the Ride the Lightning podcast that the Roadster will be built at Gigafactory Texas, adding that “you’ll start to see a lot of things unfold in the next months.”

While we get a good detail on the plant of manufacture, we also get another letdown, as it appears the unveiling event will not take place in May, as CEO Elon Musk hinted during the Earnings Call.

The Roadster was first unveiled back in 2017, alongside the Semi, which entered production earlier this year. It was Tesla’s attempt at a true supercar; it would be rare, expensive, and lightning quick, among other incredible capabilities, like potentially hovering for a short period thanks to a collaboration project with SpaceX.

However, the vehicle was set to be delivered in 2020. Parts and supply chain issues due to the COVID-19 pandemic started these delays, and since then, Tesla, and specifically Musk, have wanted to push the capabilities of the Roadster to somewhere the human mind may not be able to currently comprehend.

Both Chief Designer Franz von Holzhausen and Moravy have said many things about the Roadster over the past few years, hinting that the car truly could be worth the wait. However, the continuous delays we’ve seen have undoubtedly been discouraging.

With that being said, it’s not like Tesla has been doing nothing. Instead, the company has been focusing on revamping current models, phasing out others, and working on developing the cars of the future, specifically, the Cybercab, which entered production at Giga Texas in April.

Despite the Roadster’s delays, there is still a ton of anticipation for the vehicle to be released. It will have a steering wheel, as Musk said it will be “the best of the last of the human-driven cars.”

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NASA just gave SpaceX more crew missions because Boeing can’t certify

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NASA has filed a procurement notice announcing its intent to add six post-certification missions to SpaceX’s existing Commercial Crew Transportation Capability contract. The agency said it would order up to three of those missions immediately upon adding them to the contract, with the remaining three available as needed through the end of the International Space Station’s planned operations in 2030.

The reason for the expansion is straightforward. NASA cited recently shortened ISS mission durations, technical issues and schedule delays encountered by Boeing, the allocation of missions between Boeing and SpaceX, and the ongoing technical challenges of maintaining a reliable crew transportation capability as the driving factors behind the decision. Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner has still not been certified for crewed flights, and a cargo-only Starliner mission was not included on NASA’s most recent mission manifest. With Boeing effectively sidelined for the foreseeable future, SpaceX is the only American company capable of rotating crews to the station.

SpaceX Board has set a Mars bonus for Elon Musk

The history behind this contract tells the fuller story of how SpaceX got here. NASA originally awarded SpaceX its Commercial Crew contract in 2014 for $2.6 billion. In 2022 NASA modified the contract to add five missions covering Crew-10 through Crew-14, worth $1.436 billion, bringing the total contract value at that point to $4.9 billion. The recent May 18 filing by NASA extends that runway further, with Crew-12 currently docked at the station and Crew-13 assigned and targeting a mid-September 2026 launch.

According to a report by SpaceNews, NASA stated in its filing: “It is necessary to award additional PCMs to SpaceX given the recently shortened ISS mission durations, technical issues and schedule delays encountered by Boeing, the allocation of missions between Boeing and SpaceX, NASA’s projections for when an alternative crew transportation system may become available, and the ongoing technical challenges of maintaining a reliable capability for crewed flights to ISS.”

No dollar value for the new six missions has been publicly confirmed yet, but based on the 2022 precedent of roughly $287 million per mission, the new block could represent close to $1.7 billion in additional contract value. With SpaceX simultaneously preparing Starship as NASA’s Artemis lunar lander, filing its S-1 for a June IPO, and now absorbing more ISS crew rotation work, the company’s role as the primary contractor for American human spaceflight is no longer a matter of circumstance. It is NASA policy.

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Energy

Zuckerberg’s Meta taps Musk’s Tesla for massive clean energy project

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Credit: Tesla

In a notable intersection of Big Tech powerhouses, Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, has partnered with Canadian energy infrastructure giant Enbridge on a significant renewable energy initiative that will rely on battery technology from Elon Musk’s Tesla.

The project, which was announced this week, marks another step in Meta’s aggressive push to power its expanding data center operations with clean energy, dispelling many of the complaints people have about them.

This new development is located near Cheyenne, Wyoming, and will feature a 365-megawatt (MW) solar farm paired with a 200 MW/1,600 megawatt-hour (MWh) battery energy storage system, also known as BESS. Tesla is providing the batteries for the project, valued at roughly $200 million.

The story was originally reported by Utility Dive.

This Wyoming project represents the first phase of Enbridge and Meta’s joint “Cowboy Project.” Once operational, it will deliver power to Meta’s regional data centers through Cheyenne Light, Fuel, and Power under Wyoming’s Large Power Contract Service tariff.

This tariff, originally developed in collaboration with Microsoft and Black Hills Energy, is designed specifically for large loads like data centers. It ensures that the renewable supply serves hyperscale customers without impacting retail electricity rates for other users.

The battery system will operate under a long-term tolling agreement, providing dispatchable capacity that enhances grid reliability. During periods of high demand, the utility can access the backup generation, addressing one of the key challenges of integrating large-scale renewables with the explosive growth of data center electricity demand driven by artificial intelligence.

This latest collaboration builds on prior joint efforts between Enbridge and Meta in Texas, including the 600 MW Clear Fork Solar, 152 MW Easter Wind, and 300 MW Cone Wind projects. Together with the Wyoming initiative, the companies have now partnered on roughly 1.6 gigawatts (GW) of combined solar, wind, and storage capacity.

The deal highlights the intensifying demand for reliable, low-carbon power from technology giants. Meta has committed to supporting its data center growth with renewable energy, joining peers like Microsoft and Google in seeking large-scale solutions. Enbridge’s Allen Capps described the project as “one of the larger utility-scale battery installations supporting U.S. data center operations and growth.”

The involvement of Tesla’s battery technology adds an intriguing layer, linking two of the world’s most prominent tech leaders—Zuckerberg and Musk—in the clean energy transition.

As data centers continue to drive unprecedented electricity load growth across the United States, projects like this one illustrate how hyperscalers are turning to strategic partnerships with traditional energy players and innovative storage solutions to meet both sustainability goals and reliability needs.

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