Latest news with #ClaudiaSheinbaum
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Mexico threatens to sue Musk's SpaceX over contamination from exploding rockets
A small Texas town just across the border from Mexico is the testing ground for Starship, the hulking spacecraft that Elon Musk hopes will one day ferry people to Mars. In recent months, multiple test launches have ended in explosions, causing debris to rain down on both countries and in the Gulf of Mexico. Mexican scientists say the wreckage is killing wildlife, including dolphins, sea turtles and fish. Amid growing pressure from her constituents, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said this week that her government is investigating the "security and environmental" effects of Musk's rockets and has found that "there is indeed contamination," a charge Musk's company denies. Sheinbaum said her government is trying to determine whether SpaceX has violated international laws and said Mexico will file 'necessary lawsuits." Read more: 'The United States is the villain of our story.' Nationalism surges in Mexico amid Trump threats Her statements come amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and Mexico on security, migration and the economy. President Trump's tariffs on Mexican imports and threats of U.S. drone strikes on cartel targets have sparked a surge of nationalism here. Musk, a billionaire who is also the CEO of Tesla and the owner of X, is closely allied with the U.S. administration, having donated more than a quarter-billion dollars to help elect Trump. For several months this year he was the informal head of Trump's Department of Government Efficiency. SpaceX said in a post on X that independent tests performed on the material used in Starships confirm that it "does not present any chemical, biological or toxicological risks." The company said it attempts to recover all debris from exploded devices. U.S. groups have also blamed SpaceX rockets for environmental degradation. The company's Starbase launch facility in South Texas abuts the Boca Chica Wildlife Refuge, an expanse of tidal flats, mangroves and sand dunes that is home to rare and endangered species including ocelots, sea turtles and northern aplomado falcons. A coalition including the Sierra Club and a local Native American tribe sued the Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, alleging the agencies approved test launches without conducting thorough environmental reviews. They say failed rocket launches have spread concrete and metal debris across thousands of feet of surrounding lands — and once set off a fire that burned several acres of protected dunes. In Mexico, environmentalists began raising alarms earlier this year after space debris was discovered in the border city of Matamoros, in the Río Bravo — as Mexico calls the Rio Grande — and in the Gulf of Mexico. A local nonprofit in the state of Tamaulipas issued a report documenting animal deaths in a region known as a nesting ground for manatees, sharks, whales and other animals. It warned particularly about risks to sea turtles who ingest particles of space debris. The group said it had collected more than a ton of debris scattered along an area more than 25 miles long. The governor of Tamaulipas said authorities were also looking into the issue. Gov. Américo Villarreal Anaya said his government will verify whether 'the internationally required distances are being respected in order to have these types of facilities so that there is no risk to urban centers.' Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Mexico Threatens SpaceX Lawsuit After Texas Explosion
Mexico's president is threatening a lawsuit against American innovation — again. This time, it's Elon Musk's SpaceX that's in the crosshairs, after a recent rocket explosion at the company's Starbase launch site near Boca Chica, Texas. The site, located just miles from the southern border shared with Mexico, has become a symbol of both cutting-edge space technology and international friction. During a press conference on Wednesday, President Claudia Sheinbaum announced that her administration is reviewing alleged 'contamination' from debris that crossed into Mexico during a test failure last week, per The Guardian. The explosion, which occurred during a routine ground test of the Starship system — as previously covered by The Dallas Express — sent a fireball into the sky, a spectacle that has become a fairly routine part of developing powerful next-generation rockets. 'Just a scratch,' Musk posted to X after the explosion. Sheinbaum claims that the fallout violates international law and says her government is preparing 'the necessary lawsuits' to hold SpaceX accountable. However, U.S. officials, including the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) — have already reviewed environmental concerns surrounding the program. As recently as May, the FAA approved an increase in annual launches from five to 25, saying that the launch activity would not pose significant environmental threats, including to wildlife along the Gulf Coast. The rhetoric from Mexico's president appears to be following a familiar pattern. In May, Sheinbaum's government said it was suing Google over labeling in its Maps application, after the tech company allegedly renamed the 'Gulf of Mexico' the 'Gulf of America' for some users. SpaceX, which employs thousands in South Texas and draws global attention to the Lone Star State's emerging role in space exploration, has not commented publicly on the potential lawsuit as of time of publication. Still, Texans watching this latest dispute may see it as yet another example of foreign leaders targeting American companies for political leverage. For now, SpaceX continues to push forward with development — even if the 'path to Mars' Musk dreams of seems to draw critics from outsiders, or legal heat from Mexico's leaders. As previously reported by DX, earlier this week a multinational team of four private astronauts successfully reached the International Space Station, completing a landmark mission by Houston-based Axiom Space in collaboration with SpaceX. Launched Wednesday aboard SpaceX's new Dragon capsule nicknamed 'Grace' from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the crew docked with the ISS after a 28-hour journey. SpaceX confirmed the docking in a video post, celebrating the mission's smooth arrival.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Mexico threatens lawsuit against SpaceX over Starship explosion 'contamination'
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum has threatened to file a lawsuit against SpaceX over what the leader described as "contamination" following an explosion at SpaceX's Starbase facility earlier this month. On June 18, SpaceX was testing the upper stage of its Starship vehicle on a test stand at its Starbase site near Boca Chica Beach in Texas when Starship exploded in a dramatic fireball. SpaceX wrote on social media that there were no hazards to the surrounding communities following the explosion. But Sheinbaum contests that claim. In a press conference held on Wednesday (June 25), the Mexican president said there is a "general review underway of the international laws that are being violated" due to the fact that "there is contamination" stemming from Starship's explosion, according to Yucatan Magazine. The Guardian reports that Sheinbaum added that her government is looking to file "the necessary lawsuits" over the alleged contamination. SpaceX's Starbase testing and manufacturing facility is located near Boca Chica Beach. The area is at the very southeastern tip of Texas along the Rio Grande river, which divides the United States and Mexico. The Mexican city of Heroica Matamoros sits just across the border from Boca Chica and nearby Brownsville, Texas. This isn't the first time SpaceX has been threatened with environmental lawsuits, not to mention other legal cases. A coalition of environmental groups sued the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2023, claiming the agency did not conduct proper analyses of the damage Starship could cause to the surrounding areas, which are home to protected species of birds. In 2024, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) reported that SpaceX had violated the Clean Water Act after releasing pollutants into nearby body of waters, according to CNBC. SpaceX refuted the claims, calling the reporting "factually inaccurate." Starship launches — and explosions — have left significant amounts of debris throughout Boca Chica Beach and surrounding areas in the past. When Starship launched on its debut flight on April 20, 2023, the rocket's 33 first-stage Raptor engines sent chunks of cement and other debris flying for miles. Local residents described the launch as "terrifying" and compared it to an earthquake. Pieces of debris rained down in every direction, even crushing a nearby car. That flight ended in an equally dramatic fashion when SpaceX triggered its onboard flight termination system, causing the vehicle to explode some three minutes after liftoff. Fragments of the Starship vehicle were found along shores surrounding the area in the days following the flight. Starship's upper stage has exploded and/or crashed into the sea on eight of its nine of its test flights to date (on two launches, the company managed to return the vehicle's Super Heavy booster to Starbase, where it was caught by the 'chopstick' arms on its launch tower). On its fifth flight in November 2023, Starship managed to make a pinpoint splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
CBS News
16 hours ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Video shows "narco sub" loaded with 3.5 tons of cocaine being intercepted in Pacific Ocean off Mexico
Combating narco-subs and narco-terrorism in the U.S. and abroad The Mexican navy seized 3.5 tons of cocaine hidden in a semisubmersible vessel off the Pacific coast, authorities said Friday, while releasing video of the "narco sub" being intercepted. The vessel, manned by three people and carrying 180 packages of cocaine, was detected during a maritime patrol in waters off the southern state of Guerrero, the navy said in a statement. Authorities released images of the seized drugs next to a Mexican naval ship as well as video of the craft being intercepted at sea. The Mexican navy seized 3.5 tons of cocaine hidden in a semisubmersible vessel off the Pacific coast, authorities said Friday, while releasing video of the "narco sub" being intercpeted. Mexican navy It is the latest in a series of major drug hauls showcased by the Latin American nation, which is under pressure from President Donald Trump to curb narcotics smuggling. Mexican authorities have seized more than 44.8 tons of cocaine at sea since President Claudia Sheinbaum took office in October, the navy said. That month, the navy announced that it had seized more than 8.3 tons of an unspecified type of drugs found in a semisubmersible and a convoy of other vessels off the Pacific coast — a record for a single operation at sea. In early June, authorities said they had seized nearly 42 tons of methamphetamine worth more than $50 million during raids on illegal drug labs on land. Mr. Trump has cited trafficking of illegal drugs — particularly the synthetic opioid fentanyl — as one of the reasons for the tariffs he has imposed on imports from Mexico. The Mexican navy seized 3.5 tons of cocaine hidden in a semisubmersible vessel off the Pacific coast, authorities said Friday. Mexican Navy Semisubmersibles, which cannot go fully underwater, are popular among international drug traffickers as they can sometimes elude detection by law enforcement. The vessels — which are often spotted in Colombian waters while heading to the United States, Central America and Europe — have also been intercepted off Mexico in recent months. In November, the Mexican Navy said it seized 3.6 tons of cocaine aboard a semisubmersible off the Pacific coast which was spotted about 153 miles off the resort of Acapulco. Last August, Mexico seized more than seven tons of cocaine in two separate raids in the Pacific Ocean, and dramatic video captured the high-speed chases on the open sea.
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Mexican real estate trusts drop CIBanco as trustee after US sanctions
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Mexican real estate trusts Terrafina and Fibra Inn on Friday said they would remove lender CIBanco as their trustee, after U.S. sanctions over money laundering accusations caused Mexican authorities to step in to manage the bank earlier this week. The U.S. Treasury on Wednesday prohibited certain transactions with CIBanco, as well as bank Intercam and brokerage Vector Casa de Bolsa, under new fentanyl-related sanctions. All three firms deny the money laundering allegations. President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Thursday she had not received any evidence of money laundering from the U.S. Mexico's banking regulator will temporarily manage the three financial insitutions. Terrafina said in a filing that it was taking steps to address any potential risks posed by authorities' intervention of CIBanco, but that it did not expect to see a hit from the move. Fibra Inn, a hotel real estate trust, said CIBanco would serve as trustee until a new one was selected and appointed. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
