Ideal Verge - Your Daily Dose of Knowledge and Inspiration.

NASA

Rather than later, sooner is preferable.

Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, has hinted that Starship will be ready to land astronauts on the Moon before the estimated launch date of 2024.

Musk was responding to a tweet from a Tesla CEO on Saturday asking if the super heavy-lift launch vehicle will be ready to transport astronauts to the lunar surface by 2024, to which he replied, "Probably sooner."

Is he correct?

Of course, this may just be more of the typical Elon bravado we've all grown to despise and adore — especially given SpaceX's track record of missing mission and launch dates.

There's also the reality that Artemis will be a particularly difficult mission, requiring anywhere from eight to sixteen launches to prepare for a single voyage to the Moon. A lunar landing in 2024, according to NASA's own inspector general, is "not viable" due to delays in spacesuit development.

However, there are evidence that things are heading in the right direction. For one thing, SpaceX recently affixed Starship to the Super Heavy launcher, making it the world's largest rocket. They're simply waiting for the FAA to complete an environmental evaluation before attempting their first orbital test launch. As a result, there's a strong probability Starship will enter orbit in the fall.

In addition, according to Fox Business, NASA just made a $300 million payment to SpaceX for the planned $3 billion project. So, at the very least, the EPA is still confident in Musk's company's ability to complete the task.

In any case, it's best to treat planned launch dates for large, complex missions like Artemis with caution. The objective will be completed eventually — and even if you want to dunk on Blue Origin, it's best not to rush things (looking at you, Elon).

This article is originally published in - futurism

Batteries Can Be Recycled

Tesla claims in its 2020 Impact Report that it can now recycle up to 92 percent of the raw materials used in its battery cells, a method that the company's facilities have already started to apply.

The procedure could have a significant impact on the environmental cost of producing electric vehicle battery packs. Not only is the process energy-intensive, but Tesla's current battery lineup also requires cobalt, a rare element linked to controversial mining practises in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, and elsewhere.

Long-term planning

Tesla, for example, did not provide any particular numbers on how many battery packs it recycled last year.

Tesla battery packs recycled 1,300 tonnes of nickel, 400 tonnes of copper, and 80 tonnes of cobalt in 2020, according to the company's calculations.

According to the study, “a Tesla battery pack is meant to outlast the vehicle itself.” “As a result, just a handful customer Tesla batteries have been retired to date, including those from our nearly nine-year-old Model S cars.”

According to InsideEVs, Tesla has been working with third-parties on the process for more than two years, but has remained tight-lipped about any details.

The study states, "The modest number of post-consumer batteries that we acquire are mostly generated from our fleet of on-the-road cars, predominantly taxi-like vehicles."

Because the Model S has only been in production for nine years, it will “likely be some time before we start getting back batteries in bigger volumes,” according to the business.

Tesla is keen on creating its own nickel, cobalt, and copper from recovered batteries, thus it makes sense for the company to invest in improving its recycling procedures.

Fortunately, this could also be beneficial to the environment.

This article is originally published in - futurism