Major changes coming over the horizon for the global space industry

The attention of the world has recently been captured by the return of Japan’s Hayabusa-2 asteroid mission, the activities of Elon Musk’s SpaceX venture, and China’s Chang’e 5 moon landing, yet a quiet revolution is taking place in the global space industry. This revolution started in the 2010s and its full impact on global space industry should be measured over the…

Elon Musk Tweeted About a Bitcoin Rival. It Soared 20%

“Bitcoin is almost as bs as fiat money,” Elon Musk tweeted on Sunday, and then followed it up with another tweet. “One Word: Doge.” “The tweet sent shares of Dogecoin up nearly 20% and landed it on the list of trending Twitter topics,” reports CNN. (Later that day Musk tweeted “i love all u crazy ppl out there.”) The tech billionaire…

Indonesia wants to lure SpaceX to build rocket launch site

Indonesia has invited Tesla boss Elon Musk to build a launch site for his SpaceX’s rocket in the Southeast Asian country, pointing out the benefits of a location next to the equator, officials said. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-12-indonesia-lure-spacex-rocket-site.html…

NextMind’s Brain-Computer Interface Kit Begins Shipping To Developers

“Don a headset which places a sensor on the back of your head, and it’ll detect your brainwaves which can then be translated into digital actions,” writes Engadget. VentureBeat reports that NextMind “has started shipping its real-time brain computer interface Dev Kit for $399.”
The device translates brain signals into digital commands, allowing you to control computers, AR/VR headsets, and IoT devices…

Elon Musk On the Problem With Corporate America: ‘Too Many MBAs’

An anonymous reader quotes a report from CNBC: Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk says the biggest problem with corporate America today is that too many business school graduates are running the show. “I think that there might be too many MBAs running companies,” Musk said Tuesday at the WSJ CEO Summit. This “MBA-ization of America,” isn’t great, Musk said, especially…

SpaceX’s Successful Starship High-Altitude Flight Ends In a Fiery Explosion

Thelasko shares a report from Engadget: After a successful launch, the Starship rose and successfully maneuvered its way to the landing area. However, it appeared that the spacecraft didn’t slow down enough for a proper landing, and it exploded in thrilling fashion. On the live feed, SpaceX said the test was successful and noted it would be moving on to testing…

Jeff Bezos Shares Blue Origin Engine Test Footage

Friday on Instagram Jeff Bezos shared footage from NASA’s test of Blue Origin’s BE-7 engine, which he described approvingly as “a high-performance, additively manufactured liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen lunar landing engine with 10,000 lbf [pound-force] of thrust — deep throttling down to 2,000 lbf for a precise landing on the Moon.” The test brings the program’s cumulative test time up to 1,245…

Elon Musk Would Consider Having Tesla Acquire a Legacy Automaker

Elon Musk would consider leveraging Tesla’s mega $554 billion market cap to buy a legacy automaker, but only if it was on friendly terms, the billionaire entrepreneur said Tuesday in a wide-ranging interview with Axel Springer CEO Mathias Dopfner. From a report: Musk, who received an award Tuesday from the media giant, discussed his various interests and businesses, notably SpaceX and…

Elon Musk is Highly Confident SpaceX Will Land Humans on Mars by 2026

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk remains highly confident that his company will land humans on Mars by 2026, saying on Tuesday that it’s an achievable goal “about six years from now.” From a report: “If we get lucky, maybe four years,” Musk said, speaking on an award show webcast from Berlin, Germany. “We want to send an uncrewed vehicle there in two…

Tesla Whistleblower Martin Tripp Ordered To Pay $400,000 To Settle Hacking Case

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge: Martin Tripp, the former Tesla worker who has been embroiled in a bitter legal battle with CEO Elon Musk for over two years, was ordered to pay his former employer $400,000 after admitting to leaking confidential information to a reporter. The settlement is intended to bring an end to one of the…