In today’s Bulldog wrapup of science and technology headlines:

  • Driverless electric shuttle being tested in downtown Vegas
  • SpaceX launches first rocket since explosion in Florida 
  • Pandora shares up on stronger 4Q outlook, job cut plans
  • Spacewalking astronauts upgrade orbiting lab’s power grid 
  • Facebook introduces measures to tackle fake news in Germany

The details:

  • Driverless electric shuttle being tested in downtown Vegas

There’s a new thrill on the streets of downtown Las Vegas, where high- and low-rollers alike are climbing aboard what officials call the first driverless electric shuttle operating on a public U.S. street.

The oval-shaped shuttle began running Tuesday as part of a 10-day pilot program, carrying up to 12 passengers for free along a short stretch of the Fremont Street East entertainment district.

The vehicle has a human attendant and computer monitor, but no steering wheel and no brake pedals. Passengers push a button at a marked stop to board it.

The shuttle uses GPS, electronic curb sensors and other technology, and doesn’t require lane lines to make its way.

“The ride was smooth. It’s clean and quiet and seats comfortably,” said Mayor Carolyn Goodman, who was among the first public officials to hop a ride on the vehicle developed by the French company Navya and dubbed Arma.

“I see a huge future for it once they get the technology synchronized,” the mayor said Friday.

The vehicles have a range of about 90 miles for each electric charge and take about five to eight hours to recharge.

The top speed of the shuttle is 25 mph, but it’s running about 15 mph during the trial, Navya spokesman Martin Higgins said.

Side streets have been blocked to make a dedicated lane for it to pass traffic signals during the trial.

  • SpaceX launches first rocket since explosion in Florida

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from California on Saturday and placed a constellation of satellites in orbit, marking the company’s first launch since a fireball engulfed a similar rocket on a Florida launch pad more than four months ago.

The two-stage rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base at 9:54 a.m. carrying a payload for Iridium Communications Inc., which is replacing its entire global network with 70 next-generation satellites.

[VIDEO: Watch the entire SpaceX launch broadcast at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTmbSur4fcs ]

The satellites were deployed about an hour after launch.

About nine minutes after the rocket blasted off, to cheers from the control room, its jettisoned first stage landed upright on a so-called droneship in the Pacific Ocean south of Vandenberg — part of Spacex’s effort to make boosters reusable.

The company has succeeded six times previously with landings on a barge or ashore.

A camera aboard the first stage gave viewers a you-are-there experience as it returned to Earth, flared landing rockets and made a perfect upright touchdown on the floating pad.

The return to flight is an important step for SpaceX, billionaire Elon Musk’s California-based company that has about 70 launches in line, worth more than $10 billion. In addition to commercial launches, SpaceX ferries supplies to the International Space Station and is developing a capsule capable of carrying astronauts to the station.

  • Pandora shares up on stronger 4Q outlook, job cut plans

Pandora has reported a stronger fourth-quarter revenue outlook and announced plans to cut approximately 7 percent of its workforce.

Pandora said late Thursday that the job cuts, which would exclude Ticketfly, are being done to help trim overall operating costs. The Oakland, California-based company has been facing increasing competition from Spotify and Apple Inc.’s music service.

Pandora anticipates beating its previously announced forecast for fourth-quarter revenue in a range of $362 million to $374 million, citing its strong advertising performance. Analysts polled by FactSet expect $369.6 million.

  • Spacewalking astronauts upgrade orbiting lab’s power grid

The International Space Station’s solar power grid got three more top-of-the-line batteries Friday during the second spacewalk in a week.

Commander Shane Kimbrough and French crew member Thomas Pesquet plugged in three new lithium-ion batteries, adding to the three hooked up last week.

Just like before, the station’s robotic handyman saved the spacewalkers considerable time — and risk — by removing the decade-old nickel-hydrogen batteries and positioning the new ones for wiring. The robot is named Dextre, short for dexterous, with 11-foot-long arms that were operated remotely by flight controllers in Houston.

Kimbrough and Pesquet wrapped up the battery work in three hours. They spent nearly three more hours doing odd jobs before floating back inside.

Pesquet, a rookie astronaut, became France’s first spacewalker in 15 years. He later posted what he called the “requisite space selfie” with a reflection of Earth in the helmet.

“Unbelievable feeling to be your own space vehicle,” he said via Twitter.

Said Kimbrough in a tweet: “So amazing to be a part of a huge team that made it all happen.”

  • Facebook introduces measures to tackle fake news in Germany

Facebook says it’s introducing measures to tackle the spread of fake news in Germany, months before the country holds a national election.

The social network said Sunday the investigative media group Correctiv will be its first outside fact-checker in Germany and it’s working to bring aboard other media organizations. It said updates to make it easier to report fake news will be introduced shortly in Germany.

Facebook last month launched plans to focus on the “worst of the worst” offenders and partner with outside fact-checkers and news organizations, including The Associated Press, to sort out true news reports from made-up stories.

Germany is expected to hold a national election in September.

Facebook has also faced criticism in Germany for what critics call an insufficient response to hate speech.