Technologies

Next Flight of the Giant SpaceX Starship Draws Closer

Elon Musk says his Mars rocket prototype is ready to launch.

The Federal Aviation Administration came one step closer on Friday to giving SpaceX’s Starship the green light to launch again, but says it needs to see dozens of improvements first. SpaceX founder Elon Musk says most of those changes are done and he’s ready to blast off.

The FAA announced it has closed its investigation into the «mishap» ending of Starship’s first orbital flight attempt on April 20. That test ended with the vehicle being intentionally destroyed after the first stage Super Heavy booster failed to separate from the main Starship itself.

The agency that oversees commercial spaceflight in the US sent a letter to SpaceX outlining a list of 63 corrective actions to be taken before a launch license will be issued for the next Starship orbital flight attempt.

To be clear, the list of changes was developed in cooperation with SpaceX engineers and approved by the FAA. The way the process actually works is that SpaceX determines what it thinks caused the mishap and submits a report, including corrective actions, to the FAA. That report was submitted Aug. 21. As part of its side of the investigation, the FAA reviewed that report and sent over a final list of required changes to SpaceX last week.

«Corrective actions include redesigns of vehicle hardware to prevent leaks and fires, redesign of the launch pad to increase its robustness, incorporation of additional reviews in the design process, additional analysis and testing of safety critical systems,» the FAA said in a statement.

The agency emphasized that «the closure of the mishap investigation does not signal an immediate resumption of Starship launches.»

Just days before the FAA announcement, SpaceX and Musk said on X (formerly Twitter) that a new Starship prototype, dubbed Ship 25, had been stacked atop a new Super Heavy booster and that the mated pair was ready to launch.

Elon Musk shows off the shiny SpaceX Starship

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SpaceX later released a statement of its own on Friday that pinpointed the failure of the April 20 test flight.

«During ascent, the vehicle sustained fires from leaking propellant in the aft end of the Super Heavy booster, which eventually severed connection with the vehicle’s primary flight computer,» the statement reads. «This led to a loss of communications to the majority of booster engines and, ultimately, control of the vehicle.»

So when will the Starship fly?

The company says it has since made numerous fixes, upgrades and other mitigations to the Starship, its testing regime and its launch infrastructure. The launch pad at the SpaceX Starbase facility in south Texas was partially destroyed during the April blast-off.

On Sunday, Musk claimed on X that the SpaceX team has completed 57 of the improvements required by the FAA and that the remaining six items refer to future actions for later flights.

However, the FAA’s letter sent to SpaceX on Thursday, which was shared with myself and other reporters,implies that the company has not yet submitted its application for a launch license for Starship’s next attempt at reaching space.

So it appears the Starship is getting closer to launching again, but there’s still some paperwork to be done. It’s also possible that SpaceX still needs to demonstrate the efficacy of some of those improvements to the Starship to the satisfaction of the FAA.

This all means it’s unlikely we’ll see it fly in the next few days, but perhaps we can hope for some action in the next few weeks or so. Stay tuned.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Thursday, July 3

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for July 3.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s Mini Crossword stumped me in a few spots. 8-Across had me thinking of a couple different words, but I landed on it eventually. Need answers? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Glaswegian or Edinburgher
Answer: SCOT

5A clue: 2025 Pixar film about a boy who gets abducted by aliens
Answer: ELIO

6A clue: Strong string
Answer: TWINE

7A clue: Religious devotee with a shaved head, maybe
Answer: MONK

8A clue: Calligrapher’s assortment
Answer: INKS

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Attach, as a button
Answer: SEWON

2D clue: Sound of two glasses being «cheers-ed»
Answer: CLINK

3D clue: Noises from a pig
Answer: OINKS

4D clue: «Little piggy»
Answer: TOE

6D clue: «Did I overshare?»
Answer: TMI

Technologies

Starlink Plans to Send 42K Satellites Into Space. That Could Be Bad News for the Ozone

Technologies

Scary Survey Results: Teen Drivers Are Often Looking at Their Phones

New troubling research found that entertainment is the most common reason teens use their phones behind the wheel, followed by texting and navigation.

A new study reveals that teen drivers in the US are spending more than one-fifth of their driving time distracted by their phones, with many glances lasting long enough to significantly raise the risk of a crash. Published in the journal Traffic Injury Prevention and released on Thursday, the research found that, on average, teens reported looking at their phones during 21.1% of every driving trip. More than a quarter of those distractions lasted two seconds or longer, which is an amount of time widely recognized as dangerous at highway speeds.

Most distractions tied to entertainment, not emergencies

The top reason teens said they reached for their phones behind the wheel was for entertainment, cited by 65% of respondents. Texting (40%) and navigation (30%) were also common. Researchers emphasized that these distractions weren’t typically urgent, but rather habitual or social.

Teens know the risks

The study includes survey responses from 1,126 teen drivers across all four US regions, along with in-depth interviews with a smaller group of high schoolers. Most participants recognized that distracted driving is unsafe and believed their parents and peers disapproved of the behavior.

But many teens also assumed that their friends were doing it anyway, pointing to a disconnect between personal values and perceived social norms.

Teens think they can resist distractions

Interestingly, most teens expressed confidence in their ability to resist distractions. That belief, researchers suggest, could make it harder to change behavior unless future safety campaigns specifically target these attitudes.

The study’s lead author, Dr. Rebecca Robbins of Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital, said interventions should aim to shift social norms while also emphasizing practical steps, such as enabling «Do Not Disturb» mode and physically separating drivers from their devices.

«Distracted driving is a serious public health threat and particularly concerning among young drivers,» Robbins said. «Driving distracted doesn’t just put the driver at risk of injury or death, it puts everyone else on the road in danger of an accident.»

What this means for parents and educators

The researchers say their findings can help guide educators and parents in developing more persuasive messaging about the dangers of distracted driving. One of the recommendations is that adults need to counter teens’ beliefs that phone use while driving is productive or harmless.

While the study’s qualitative component was limited by a small and non-urban sample, the authors believe the 38-question survey they developed can be used more broadly to assess beliefs, behaviors and the effectiveness of future safety efforts.