Tag: elon musk

Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites could be eroding Earth’s magnetic field and slowly poisoning us all, ex-NASA scientist warns

An ex-NASA physicist warns cheap satellite ‘megaconstellations’ like Elon Musk‘s Starlink could disrupt Earth’s magnetosphere exposing all life to deadly cosmic rays.

Dr. Sierra Solter-Hunt’s new study draws on new estimates that Musk’s SpaceX is burning up over 2,755 lbs (1.3 tons) of wireless internet satellite debris into Earth’s atmosphere every hour — creating a metal layer of ‘conductive particulate’ in orbit.

‘I was very surprised,’ physicist Dr Solter-Hunt told DailyMail.com. ‘No one has given much research to the accumulation of metal dust from the space industry.’

There are 5,504 Starlink satellites now in orbit, as of the last estimate by astronomers this March, of which 5,442 are operational. But tens of thousands more are planned.

Particles from these satellites at the end of their lifecycle could ‘distort or trap the magnetic field’ that keeps Earth’s atmosphere from escaping, the physicist said, ‘with all of the highly-conductive metal trash that is all settling in one region.’

Although she notes it is an ‘extreme case,’ such a layer of charged metal dust could lead to ‘atmospheric stripping’ akin to the ancient fates of Mars and Mercury.

After working on NASA’s comet-catching Stardust spacecraft research team in 2012, Dr Solter-Hunt spent three years at the US Air Force Research Laboratory.

There she studied the electromagnetic behavior of plasma plumes in low-Earth orbit (LEO), the region of the upper-atmosphere where Starlink’s orbital network resides. She now consults on space weather’s impact on the aerospace industry. 

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X To Pay Legal Fees Of Doctor Targeted For Speaking Out Against COVID Lockdowns

Elon Musk’s X has announced that it will finance the defense of a doctor in Canada who has been targeted and had her life savings drained away by having to fight legal battles after speaking out against COVID lockdowns and vaccine mandates.

In the announcement, X said it is “proud to help defend Dr. Kulvinder Kaur Gill against the government-supported efforts to cancel her speech.”

X notes that Dr. Gill “spoke out publicly on Twitter (now X) in opposition to the Canadian and Ontario governments’ COVID lockdown efforts and vaccination mandates, she was harassed by the legacy media, censored by prior Twitter management, and subjected to investigations and disciplinary proceedings by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario that resulted in ‘cautions’ being placed on her permanent public record.”

“Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and a critical defense against totalitarianism in all forms,” the company continued, adding “We must do whatever we can to protect it, and at X we will always fight to protect your right to speak freely.”

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Elon Musk Delivers Satellite Tech To Military To Turn Earth Into A Panopticon Of Surveillance

The U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) is reportedly acquiring a constellation of hundreds of intelligence-gathering satellites from SpaceX, with a specific focus on tracking targets down below in support of ground operations. Though details about this project are still very limited, there are clear parallels to what the U.S. Space Force has previously said about a highly classified space-based radar surveillance program, which it first publicly disclosed around the same time SpaceX is said to have gotten its NRO contract. If this program is the one we think it is, it could bring about a revolution in both tactical and strategic space-based sensing.

Starshield, SpaceX’s government-sales-focused business unit, has been working on the new low Earth orbit (LEO) spy satellites under a $1.8 billion contract it received in 2021 from NRO, according to a report from Reuters this past weekend, citing five anonymous sources familiar with the deal. The Wall Street Journal had previously published a story about the existence of the contract in February, but did not name NRO as being involved or provide specific details about the deal’s scope of work.

At the time of writing, neither SpaceX nor its CEO Elon Musk appear to have directly responded to the Reuters article or otherwise commented on the details therein. NRO, a U.S. military organization that serves as America’s main remote sensing intelligence arm, and is so secret that its existence was not publicly acknowledged until 1992, declined to comment on the specifics of any deal with SpaceX, according to Reuters.

“We’ve changed our procurement methods to take advantage of LEO technologies,” Troy Meink, NRO’s Principal Deputy Director, did say, speaking generally, in a speech at the Satellite 2024 conference on Monday, according to SpaceNews. “Our main priority is to meet the requirements with minimum risk.

When the new constellation, or at least an initial segment thereof, might begin collecting intelligence operationally, if it hasn’t already, isn’t clear. SpaceX has been launching relevant prototype satellites since 2020, before its formal contract with NRO, and “a U.S. government database of objects in orbit shows several SpaceX missions having deployed satellites that neither the company nor the government have ever acknowledged,” per Reuters.

As for why SpaceX is the one to deliver this constellation to the Pentagon, it pioneered the capability and is really the only experienced contractor in this area at this time, although that will change in the years to come.

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If SpaceX’s Secret Constellation Is What We Think It Is, It’s Game Changing

The U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) is reportedly acquiring a constellation of hundreds of intelligence-gathering satellites from SpaceX, with a specific focus on tracking targets down below in support of ground operations. Though details about this project are still very limited, there are clear parallels to what the U.S. Space Force has previously said about a highly classified space-based radar surveillance program, which it first publicly disclosed around the same time SpaceX is said to have gotten its NRO contract. If this program is the one we think it is, it could bring about a revolution in both tactical and strategic space-based sensing.

Starshield, SpaceX’s government-sales-focused business unit, has been working on the new low Earth orbit (LEO) spy satellites under a $1.8 billion contract it received in 2021 from NRO, according to a report from Reuters this past weekend, citing five anonymous sources familiar with the deal. The Wall Street Journal had previously published a story about the existence of the contract in February, but did not name NRO as being involved or provide specific details about the deal’s scope of work.

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Musk’s SpaceX is building spy satellite network for US intelligence agency, sources say

SpaceX is building a network of hundreds of spy satellites under a classified contract with a U.S. intelligence agency, five sources familiar with the program said, demonstrating deepening ties between billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk’s space company and national security agencies.

The network is being built by SpaceX’s Starshield business unit under a $1.8 billion contract signed in 2021 with the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), an intelligence agency that manages spy satellites, the sources said.

The plans show the extent of SpaceX’s involvement in U.S. intelligence and military projects and illustrate a deeper Pentagon investment into vast, low-Earth orbiting satellite systems aimed at supporting ground forces.

If successful, the sources said the program would significantly advance the ability of the U.S. government and military to quickly spot potential targets almost anywhere on the globe.

The contract signals growing trust by the intelligence establishment of a company whose owner has clashed with the Biden administration and sparked controversy, opens new tab over the use of Starlink satellite connectivity in the Ukraine war, the sources said.

The Wall Street Journal reported, opens new tab in February the existence of a $1.8 billion classified Starshield contract with an unknown intelligence agency without detailing the purposes of the program.

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Elon Musk Is Right and The NY Times Is Wrong About Illegal Voting by Non-Citizens

In a recent trio of posts to X, Elon Musk wrote that (1) illegal immigrants “are not prevented from voting in federal elections,” (2) “you don’t need government issued ID to vote,” and (3) Democrats “are importing voters.”

To rebut those statements, The New York Times (NYT) published an article by Jim Rutenberg and Kate Conger claiming that Mr. Musk is “spreading election misinformation” about “illegal voting by noncitizens” and echoing a “conspiracy theory” spread by former President Donald Trump.

Although Mr. Musk’s words are imprecise, the gist of what he wrote is correct, and The NYT is categorically wrong.

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Elon Musk’s X Blocks Searches for ‘Taylor Swift’ Amid Spread of Explicit AI-Generated Images

X was blocking searches for “Taylor Swift”over the weekend following the spread of AI-generated images depicting the pop star in sexually explicit poses.

Searches for “Taylor Swift” and “Taylor Swift AI” on X returned error messages on Saturday and Sunday, though Elon Musk’s platform allowed variations on the search terms, including “Taylor Swift photos AI.”

X confirmed it is deliberately blocking the search phrases for the time being.

“This is a temporary action and done with an abundance of caution as we prioritize safety on this issue,” X’s head of business operations Joe Benarroch said in a statement sent to multiple media outlets.

The Joe Biden administration and the mainstream news media shifted into high gear after the fake Taylor Swift images went viral, seeking to protect the left-wing pop star.

“We are alarmed by the reports of the circulation of the false images,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Friday, saying social media companies need to do a better job enforcing their own rules.

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Anti-Zionist Twitter Users See Their Reach Plummet Ahead of Elon Musk’s Planned Visit to Auschwitz

Anti-Zionist Twitter users are finding that their reach has plummeted ahead of X owner Elon Musk’s planned visit to Auschwitz next week to speak on a panel with Ben Shapiro on “combating antisemitism.”

Censored Men, a large anti-Zionist X account, reported that many X users are finding their engagement is up but their impressions are down.

We have also seen heightened levels of censorship lately.

Lucas Gage was banned for 3 months, Autumn Groyper [Nick Fuentes’ alt account] was permanently banned and Sulaiman Ahmed has been locked out of his account.

This comes after major Telegram channels, and X accounts in some cases, have set up a targeted campaign to get these people removed from the app.

Now, I can’t say for certain that it was these accounts and Telegram channels that lead to the ban of these people, but it’s definitely something X should be looking into.

I hope all the issues many creators are experiencing on this app, can be addressed as soon as possible.

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Several Large Accounts That Criticized Israel and Musk Banned from X

A group of journalists and political commentators with large followings were banned on X without notice. The owners of the banned profiles pointed to criticisms of Israel and Elon Musk. 

On Tuesday morning, the accounts of Alan MacLeod, Ken Klippenstein, Rob Rousseau, the True Anon Podcast, Steven Monacelli, and an anonymous account @Zei_Squrill, were all banned on the platform owned by Musk. 

MacLeod, who had over 200,000 followers on X, posted on Telegram that the suspension came without warning. “Today, without warning or explanation, Twitter suspended my account, @AlanRMacLeod. They told me to check my email for a reason, but no email has been forthcoming,” the journalist wrote. “I have never even remotely been involved in any controversy/been reported/been stuck in Twitter jail before, so I assume the real reason is political, especially as high-profile leftist accounts like Rob Rousseau and Zei_Squirrel were also targeted today.”

In a statement provided to The Libertarian Institute, MacLeod said, “I’m deeply concerned about Twitter banning a host of influential anti-war accounts today, including my own. It is a sign that Elon Musk’s supposed passion for free speech might not be all that it seems.”

Musk acquired Twitter in October of 2022 and later renamed the platform X. At the time, he said he aimed to make Twitter a “platform for free speech around the globe.” 

In one of his first acts as owner of Twitter, he allowed Matt Taibbi and other journalists to access the business communications of the company’s leadership. In the Twitter Files, Taibbi exposed a coordinated effort between the government and Twitter to censor speech that countered the establishment narrative on the election, covid, and the war in Ukraine. 

However, as America has entered an election year, Musk-owned X is stepping up its censorship efforts. 

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San Francisco Boasted They Would Hire Thousands Of Sacked Twitter Employees – It Didn’t Happen

One of the biggest shock events in the history of digital communications took place in April of 2022 when Elon Musk followed through on his promise to purchase Twitter (now known as X).  The buyout took place amid the chaos of covid hype and in the middle of a full spectrum mass censorship campaign organized by Big Tech companies and multiple government agencies and officials.  

In early 2022, it was nearly impossible to make statements regarding certain hot button issues; any information contrary to the establishment narrative about covid vaccines, gender ideology, Hunter Biden’s laptop, the war in Ukraine, or the events of January 6th were treated as radioactive.  Tens of thousands of people lost their social media accounts merely for reprinting the facts.

Musk reactivated many of these accounts (including Zero Hedge’s account) after taking control of the company, and then targeted the root of the censorship regime:  The far-left management as well as the incredible number of activist moderators employed by the website to monitor and silence dissent.  

Not surprisingly, this action triggered a mob of journalists as well as government bureaucrats who threatened investigations into Musk’s takeover while entertaining the possibility of shutting the company down completely.  The government’s collusion with Big Tech to violate the 1st Amendment rights of Americans was exposed and leftists lost one of their biggest online echo chambers. Their veritable monopoly was broken.  Musk also proved that Twitter was a bloated farce after firing over 80% of Twitter staff (more than 6000 people), only for the platform to function just fine without them.  

The woke regime was not done posturing yet, though.  In November of 2022 San Francisco Mayor London Breed attempted to stick it to Musk when she announced that the city would offer 4800 vacant positions to the fired “Tweeps” (Twitter employees).

It’s not surprising that the city government believed thousands of activist managers and censors would find easy homes within the local bureaucracy, but the purpose of the Mayor’s offer was more likely to send a message.  What was the message?  That leftists will be protected from the consequences of their decisions and behavior.  If they are ever made to reap the whirlwind, the hive will respond and ensure that they fail upwards; that they are granted more favors and more benefits to offset what few punishments they might endure.  

It’s the ever present reward for fealty to the leftist cause; no failure is left behind.  At least, in theory…  

Breed had recently attacked Musk in a Bloomberg interview as “the person who got a ton of tax breaks in California and decided to take that money and run,” after he moved Tesla out of California and set up shop in Texas.  Her hostility to the mogul’s business efforts was no secret.  

Riding the wave of anti-Musk sentiment in CA might have seemed valuable at the time and giving reassurance to activists that no one would really suffer consequences made the woke movement feel at ease, but following through on bold claims is not something leftists are known for.  

As it turned out, the mass job offer for fired Tweeps was nothing more than a virtue signal.

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