This Week In Space podcast: Episode 161 — The TWiS Comedy Hour!
On Episode 161 of This Week In Space, Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik catch up on headlines ... and space dad jokes! We're going to update you on the ever-slimming NASA budget, the latest news on the Voyager spacecraft, what's up with the SLS, Orion capsule, and Artemis programs? SpaceX's 9th Starship test flight, AliBaba in orbit, and the end of the universe. And more space jokes than ever for you to choke on.
Download or subscribe to this show at: https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space.Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit
Gilmour Space - "TestFlight 1 - Scrubbed"
The top fell off Australia's first orbital-class rocket, delaying its launch
If Congress actually cancels the SLS rocket, what happens next?
NASA resurrects Voyager 1 interstellar spacecraft's thrusters after 20 years: 'These thrusters were considered dead'
Trump's proposed 2026 NASA budget cuts will cede our space 'position of leadership to other nations', top scientists say
Is NASA ready for the Red Planet? US senator's 'Mission to MARS Act' aims to modernize Johnson Space Center
SpaceX will launch Starship's 9th test flight next week, Elon Musk says
Scientists calculate when the universe will end — it's sooner than expected
China launches first of 2,800 satellites for AI space computing constellation
Starlink Outpaces Launches: SpaceX Enters New Era of Profitability
Cancelled VIPER Moon Rover: New News – Lights-on or Off?
Strongest solar flare of 2025 erupts from sun, sparking radio blackouts across Europe, Asia and the Middle East
NASA Observes First Visible-light Auroras at Mars
Virgin Galactic says production of new spaceplanes on track
TOP TELESCOPE PICK:
Looking for a telescope to see planets and comets? We recommend the Celestron Astro Fi 102 as the top pick in our best beginner's telescope guide.
Finally, did you know you can launch your own SpaceX rocket? Model rocket maker Estes' stunning scale model of a Falcon 9 rocket that you can pick up now. The launchable model is a detailed recreation of the Falcon 9 and retails for $149.99. You can save 10% by using the code IN-COLLECTSPACE at checkout, courtesy of our partners collectSPACE.com.
This Week in Space covers the new space age. Every Friday we take a deep dive into a fascinating topic. What's happening with the new race to the moon and other planets? When will SpaceX really send people to Mars?
Join Rod Pyle and Tariq Malik from Space.com as they tackle those questions and more each week on Friday afternoons. You can subscribe today on your favorite podcatcher.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
TechCrunch
an hour ago
- TechCrunch
Elon Musk's SpaceX might invest $2 billion in Musk's xAI
In Brief One Elon Musk business might be making a big investment in another. According to a Wall Street Journal report that cites investors close to SpaceX, the company has agreed to invest $2 billion in Musk's AI startup xAI. The investment would reportedly be part of the $5 billion equity raise (along with another $5 billion in debt) that Morgan Stanley announced at the end of June. This would be SpaceX's first investment in xAI, and one of its biggest investments in another company. The WSJ says SpaceX already uses xAI's chatbot Grok to power customer service for its Starlink internet service, with plans for more partnerships. Musk has not been shy about using his various companies to support each other, for example merging xAI with X (formerly Twitter) earlier this year. And despite xAI's recent apology for Grok's antisemitic comments (including posts where the chatbot described itself as 'MechaHitler'), Tesla is bringing Grok to its vehicles.
Business Insider
an hour ago
- Business Insider
Musk Moves $2B from SpaceX to xAI: Can Grok Compete with ChatGPT?
According to a report on The Wall Street Journal, SpaceX just committed $2 billion to xAI, Elon Musk's artificial intelligence company. The deal makes up nearly half of xAI's $5 billion equity round announced last month and represents the rocket company's first known investment in the chatbot maker behind Grok. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Make smarter investment decisions with TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks, delivered to your inbox every week. Musk has a long track record of moving capital, talent, and hardware across his empire, borrowing from SpaceX to fund Tesla (TSLA) in its early days. He used SpaceX infrastructure to launch The Boring Company. And in 2022, a $1 billion loan from SpaceX helped finance his acquisition of Twitter, now known as X. That money was paid back quickly, but the playbook is the same: leverage one company to speed up another. Musk Links his AI Startup to SpaceX and Starlink With this latest move, Musk is now aligning xAI with Starlink, SpaceX's satellite internet service, where Grok powers customer support. He also says Grok will eventually help drive Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot. For investors, this is a familiar pattern: What happens in one Musk company tends to spill over into the others. However, Grok still trails ChatGPT from OpenAI and Gemini from Alphabet (GOOG). Since launching Grok-1 in late 2023, xAI has pushed out multiple upgrades. Grok-4, released this month, includes advanced language, vision, and coding capabilities. Musk claims it's the 'smartest AI in the world,' but real-world traction is limited. Recent antisemitic controversy over Grok's outputs on X highlights the model's moderation challenges. Meanwhile, OpenAI continues to dominate the space with GPT-4o, and Google's Gemini has shown steady improvements. These models have more users, developer support, and brand trust. Even if Grok is technically catching up, the gap in adoption and integration remains wide. 'We Have Plenty of Capital' SpaceX had more than $3 billion in cash recently, according to reports. But it's also spending billions on its Starship rocket, which has faced setbacks. Tapping that balance sheet to back xAI adds exposure, and possibly reward, to SpaceX's risk profile. xAI raised another $5 billion in debt alongside the equity, and Musk denies reports that it is seeking a $200 billion valuation. 'We have plenty of capital,' he said in response. Whether Grok ever rivals ChatGPT remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: Musk isn't waiting for outside approval. He's financing his AI vision from within. Is Tesla a Buy, Sell, or Hold? Back to Musk's publicly traded company, Tesla, which currently boasts a Hold consensus rating from Wall Street analysts based on 36 reviews. The average price target stands at $295.80, suggesting a potential downside of 5.65%.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Space Coast's 60th launch of year also Falcon 9's 500th successful SpaceX mission
An early Sunday morning SpaceX launch marked the 60th orbital mission from the Space Coast from all companies for the year, but also the 500th successful mission for the workhorse Falcon 9 rocket. The rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Space Launch Complex 40 at 1:04 a.m. carrying an Israeli communications satellite on the Commercial GTO 1 mission. The first-stage booster flew for the 13th time and made a recovery landing downrange on the droneship Just Read the Instructions. It was the 502nd launch of a Falcon 9 since its debut in 2010, with the company only losing the rocket on two missions — once in 2015 and then in July 2024. The company has also flown its larger Falcon Heavy 11 times since 2018, but not yet so far in 2025. SpaceX has launched all but three of the Space Coast missions in 2025 with Blue Origin's New Glenn making its debut flight in January and United Launch Alliance having flown two Atlas V rockets on missions for Amazon's Project Kuiper in April and June. ULA has its new Vulcan rocket lined up for its first national security launch, the USSF-106 mission for the Space Force, but its launch date has not been announced. Blue Origin this week announced the engines for its next New Glenn rocket are ready, but isn't expected to fly until at least fall. Meanwhile, SpaceX will continue to launch regularly from both Cape Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center. The next KSC launch from SpaceX is the Crew-11 mission to the International Space Station no earlier than July 31. The Commercial Crew Program flight will take up two astronauts from NASA, one for Japan's JAXA and one cosmonaut for Roscosmos to relieve the Crew-10 crew that has been on the station since March. That flight will be the fourth human spaceflight for SpaceX this year including Crew-10 and the private polar orbital Fram2 mission and private Axiom Space Ax-4 mission, whose astronauts are currently on board the station, but scheduled to leave as soon as Monday morning. The Space Coast saw a record 93 launches in 2024 and is on pace to break 100 launches for 2025. SpaceX has flown 85 orbital missions among its Florida and California facilities this year, and is also on track to break its record of 134 missions that it flew in 2024.
