Brief

SpaceX reportedly leveraged its dominant position in satellite internet to pressure the Pentagon into paying significantly more for Starlink access. Executives met with Department of Defense officials to argue that the military's usage of the service, particularly for drones, warranted an upgrade to a more expensive tier. Despite the Pentagon's objections that the higher-cost aviation-grade service was not suited for short-duration drone use, SpaceX's lack of competition in the market led the military to reportedly double the cost for certain drone applications. AI

SpaceX successfully launched its Starship V3 rocket for the twelfth time, amidst a global fuel crisis, though the rocket's methane-based propellant is distinct from gasoline and thus unaffected by oil prices. While methane combustion is cleaner than kerosene, a single Starship launch still produces significant carbon dioxide equivalent emissions. A larger environmental concern stems from the increasing number of kerosene-burning rockets used for satellite megaconstellations, which inject pollutants directly into the upper atmosphere, potentially warming the stratosphere and depleting the ozone layer. AI