SpaceX has successfully launched its first mission of 2018, after capping a record year last year in 2017 with 18 total launches. The first launch this year carried a special payload – Zuma, a secretive spacecraft commissioned by the U.S. government for an undisclosed mission. SpaceX launched Zuma from its SLC-40 launch facility at Cape Canaveral in Florida, which was used instead of… Read More
Category: hyperloop
SpaceX targets January 5 launch for mystery Zuma payload
SpaceX is launching Zuma, a mystery spacecraft operated by the U.S. government for purposes unknown, thanks to it being very classified. The launch was supposed to take place last year, with a November date for the flight, but it was scrubbed, reset and then scrubbed again with no firm timeline for a follow up attempt. Zuma is now set to take off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral tentatively… Read More
SpaceX caps a record year with 18th successful launch of 2017
SpaceX has completed its 18th launch in 2017, marking a record year for the private space company. It’s the most rockets SpaceX has launched in a single year, beating its previous best by ten missions. The launch today was for client Iridium, delivering 10 satellites to low Earth orbit for its Iridium NEXT communications constellation. This is the fourth such mission that SpaceX has… Read More
Elon Musk really will launch a Tesla Roadster on the first Falcon Heavy rocket
Elon Musk shared images on his Instagram account today of the payload being loaded up on the first Falcon Heavy rocket that will ever launch – and it’s a red Tesla Roadster. The SpaceX CEO previously said that he’d be launching exactly that on the spaceship, but then suggested he was joking – before the whole thing was confirmed again by SpaceX, and now made really… Read More
Virgin Hyperloop One said to add Richard Branson as Chair and raise $50M
It’s probably no surprise that billionaire Richard Branson is going to be taking a more active role in Virgin Hyperloop One, considering the company adopted the “Virgin” moniker after Branson’s global co. became a key backer earlier this year. Now, Axios reports that he’ll be made chairman of the company, as it takes on an additional $50 million in funding to help… Read More
SpaceX launches a reused Dragon atop a reused Falcon 9 for the first time
SpaceX has moved one step closer to its dream of affordable, efficient reusable space flight: Today for its CRS-13 resupply mission for the International Space Station it managed to launch a previously-flown Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket with a flight-proven first stage booster. That’s the first time it’s flown both types of reused equipment at the same time. The… Read More
The Boring Co. tops 30,000 hats sold
That didn’t toque too long! The Boring Company has now sold 30,000 hats to fund its hole-some mission, founder Elon Musk tweeted today. That’s double the sales Musk announced just three weeks ago. Production will be capped at 50,000 hats, so if the current momentum doesn’t fez out, trilby all gone soon. Read More
Shervin Pishevar responds to allegations of sexual misconduct, calling it a “smear campaign”
Early yesterday evening, a story broke on Bloomberg alleging Uber investor and Hyperloop One co-founder Shervin Pishevar had used his position of power to make unwanted sexual advances to at least five women. Pishevar, through his lawyer, now says these allegations are part of a “smear campaign” against him.
The allegations are egregious. One woman who spoke to Bloomberg alleged… Read More
Elon Musk wants to dig a Boring Company tunnel in Chicago
/https%3A%2F%2Fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fstory%2Fthumbnail%2F64046%2Fad0fd0fd-6a31-41c7-9182-c227704ce886.jpg)
SpaceX adds $100 million to previous $350 million funding round
SpaceX filed a new amended update to its $351 million funding round from this summer, adding around $100 million to the round in newly disclosed funds and bringing the total to $450 million. The new follow-on funding puts SpaceX’s total post-money valuation at $21.5 billion. SpaceX spokesperson James Gleeson provided the following statement regarding the amended filing: “This… Read More
The Boring Co.’s ‘Initial Hat Offering’ raises $300K for digging in hat sales
Do you like hats? If you do, maybe you already contributed to The Boring Company’s ability to dig a network of underground tunnels. Since Elon Musk started selling The Boring Co. hats, featuring the logo on the front (which he once claimed was designed by director J.J. Abrams), the company has apparently sold $300,000 worth of the merch. Read More
Tesla Semi has the technical capability to convoy today
Tesla founder Elon Musk revealed at the Tesla Semi unveil that the truck can work in a convoy mode, with a three-truck convoy beating not only traditional diesel trucking, but also rail transport in terms of a cost per mile price. It can do $0.85 per mile, with diesel only able to do around $1.25 per mile at today’s gas prices. Convoying involves using a lead car to provide guidance… Read More