Canoo’s Artemis crew vehicles arrive at Kennedy Space Center
NASA’s Artemis program and the preparations for the Artemis 2 mission are in full swing. Flight hardware is arriving at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center to construct the giant SLS rocket, and crewed hardware is also being delivered. The Artemis astronauts’ first ride on launch day is now in procession of Canoo’s fully electric crew transport vehicles.
Artemis, NASA’s program aimed at returning humanity to the Moon and establishing a permanent presence, began with the launch of CAPSTONE on a Rocket Lab Electron rocket in June 2022. This mission paved the way for testing the orbit that the Orion spacecraft would follow during lunar missions. Last November, NASA launched its first Space Launch System rocket with an Orion capsule, which traveled around the Moon and returned. This mission was a full test of the rocket before the first crewed flight is scheduled for late 2024 to early 2025.
One crucial aspect of launching crew into space is transporting them to the launch pad. Throughout NASA’s history, variations of Astrovans have been used to transport crews for Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, and Shuttle missions. The most iconic of these was a modified Airstream motorhome used during the Shuttle era, capable of carrying the entire crew, with suit technicians, to LC-39A or B for launch.
For Artemis, the iconic Airstream’s shiny metal exteriors have been replaced by Canoo’s full glass roofs and electric motors. NASA has announced that it has received a fleet of three Canoo electric SUVs, which have been modified to transport Artemis crew and technicians from KSC’s Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building to LC-39B.
We are thrilled to be a part of the Artemis missions and to deliver NASA’s first zero-emission built for mission crew transportation vehicles. It’s a very proud day for Canoo and all of our partners who worked so hard to ensure we perform our part to transport the astronauts for the first nine miles of every launch.
Tony Aquila, Chairman and CEO, Canoo
Canoo was awarded the contract in April 2022, making it one of the fastest turnarounds for the Artemis Program from contract to delivery. The early delivery of these vehicles, well ahead of the Artemis 2 mission, will allow NASA teams to practice the drive to the launch pad and familiarize themselves with all the procedures involved in moving the crew.
The nine-mile journey will be the crew’s final trip on Earth before being launched towards the Moon for a duration of up to a month. The Canoo vehicles are equipped to transport astronauts fully suited in NASA’s Orion Crew Survival System, an updated version of the iconic orange flight suits worn by Shuttle crews.
Canoo’s vehicle will be NASA’s first crew transport van to be powered entirely by batteries, although it is not the first electric crew vehicle. That distinction belongs to Tesla, which operates a fleet of Model Xs for SpaceX’s crews flying on the Crew Dragon spacecraft. These vehicles are used by NASA, International Space Station partners, and commercial customers like Axiom and the Inspiration4 mission.
Unfortunately, the third component of the crew transport trident, Boeing’s “Astrovan II,” which will be used for crewed Starliner flights, is a modified Airstream Atlas and will use a traditional engine. However, the future lies in electric vehicles, and when humanity returns to the Moon, the world will witness their journey to the launch pad powered solely by electricity.
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In his latest crackdown on e-bike riders, New York City Mayor Eric Adams is pushing for a new citywide e-bike speed limit of 15 mph (25 km/h), despite the fact that no one seems to know how it would actually be enforced.
The proposal, introduced last month as part of a broader package aimed at improving safety on city streets, would make it illegal to ride an e-bike over 15 mph. But experts, advocates, and even city officials are scratching their heads about how the rule would work in practice.
Most consumer e-bikes are already sold with speed limits in place: 20 mph (32 km/h) for throttle assist and 28 mph (45 km/) for pedal assist, per classifications used in the majority of states in the US. Yet those limits are controlled by the bike’s electronics, not by any city infrastructure.
According to reporting by Hell Gate NYC, even the Mayor’s own office couldn’t explain what the enforcement mechanism would look like, and no single agency has so far been put in charge of enforcing the speed limit. Will the city mandate software modifications such as those that limit Class 3 e-bikes to 25 mph (40 km/h) in NYC? Would they rely on radar guns like traditional speeding enforcement for cars? Install speed cameras that can identify bikes? So far, there are no answers.
Citi Bike has already reduced its electric bicycle fleet’s speed limits to 15 mph, but that only impacts shared e-bikes used in the city. Complicating matters further is the fact that most delivery riders – who are clearly the unspoken target of this policy – don’t use mainstream e-bikes from the major manufacturers, or even those that can accept firmware updates to adjust speed and power. Many of them ride inexpensive, sometimes heavily modified throttle bikes purchased online or from bike shops like FLY that cater to these types of riders. Such e-bikes often lack more sophisticated software speed-limiting features, and few, if any, have any form of digital connectivity that could allow for remote speed capping.
City transportation experts note that enforcement of speed limits on e-bikes is nearly impossible without clocking and stopping each rider. Unlike cars, bikes don’t have license plates. And even if a bike is capable of going faster than 15 mph, it doesn’t mean the rider is actually breaking the law – unless caught in the act. Nearly every car in NYC can likely push close to or past 100 mph (160 km/h), despite the city wide’s vehicular speed limit of just 25 mph. Advocates have also questioned the wisdom of focusing on e-bike speed while car crashes continue to injure and kill far more people.
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Environment
Range Rover’s electric SUV won’t launch this year after a surprise delay, but there’s more
Range Rover’s first EV was initially scheduled to arrive later this year, but that won’t be the case. JLR has delayed the launch of the Range Rover Electric after telling customers they will have to wait a little longer. However, that may not be the only EV JLR is delaying.
Range Rover Electric and Jaguar EVs are being delayed
Although the electric SUV was originally due to hit showrooms in late 2025, it’s now being pushed back until next year.
The British automaker claimed it needed more time for testing while it waited for stronger demand. However, there’s more to the story. According to The Guardian, Jaguar Land Rover wrote to clients waiting for the Range Rover Electric, telling them deliveries will not start until 2026.
Sources close to the matter said the delay could also impact two Jaguar EV models, including the radical blue-and-pink Type 00 Concept. Jaguar’s electric vehicles are expected to be delayed by several months.
The news comes after JLR announced plans to cut up to 500 management positions in the UK this week. Britain’s largest carmaker was hit hard by the Trump Administration’s new auto tariffs.
JLR’s sales plunged over 15% in the previous quarter after the company was forced to temporarily halt shipments to the US.
A company spokesperson confirmed that “By 2030 JLR will sell electric versions of all its luxury brands,” adding “we will launch our new models at the right time for our clients, our business and individual markets.”
Range Rover’s first electric SUV has secured over 61,000 customers on the waiting list. JLR claims it’s currently undergoing “the most intensive testing any Range Rover vehicle has ever endured.”
An electric version of the Velar is due for a radical new look. It’s scheduled for production in April 2026, but that could also be delayed. An electric Defender is due out in early 2027.
Meanwhile, production on Jaguar’s new EV, its first since the I-PACE, is set to begin in August 2026. Jaguar’s electric GT is expected to cost over £100,000 ($135,000) as part of its brand revamp. Its second EV may not launch until December 2027 now.
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This week on Electrek’s Wheel-E podcast, we discuss the most popular news stories from the world of electric bikes and other nontraditional electric vehicles. This time, that includes new e-bikes from Aventon and Lectric, a surge in Amish riding e-bikes, a wireless charging kickstand, cheaper electric motorcycles coming from Honda and LiveWire and more.
The Wheel-E podcast returns every two weeks on Electrek’s YouTube channel, Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
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Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the Wheel-E podcast today:
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 9:00 a.m. ET (or the video after 10:00 a.m. ET):
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