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SpaceX’s youngest Falcon 9 booster returns to port after second launch
SpaceX’s youngest flight-proven Falcon 9 booster has returned to port after its second successful launch in ten weeks, preceded by the shrapnel of a destroyed payload fairing two days prior.
On June 30th, Falcon 9 B1060 lifted off for the first time, ultimately supporting SpaceX’s first operational US military satellite launch and completing the first successful booster landing after such a mission. Originally scheduled as early as August 29th, the same booster supported Starlink-11 on September 3rd, just 64 days after launching the US military’s GPS III SV03 satellite. In doing so, B1060 became the third Falcon 9 booster ever to launch twice in less than 70 days – all three instances of which occurred this year.
On the fairing recovery front, SpaceX’s Starlink-11 mission was not not nearly as lucky. Recovery ships GO Ms. Tree and GO Ms. Chief returned to Port Canaveral about 48 hours prior the Falcon 9 booster they launched on – but in a pile of jagged shards rather than two intact halves.
While SpaceX will have to continue chasing the ever-illusive double-fairing-catch it first tasted on July 20th, any recovery – even if just fragments – should still produce valuable data that can inform future recovery attempts and help prevent a similar fate from befalling future fairings. Outcome aside, the recovery also made for a spectacular port return for the (mostly) emptyhanded ships.
The success of Falcon 9 booster B1060’s second launch and ocean landing in 64 days is unequivocal, however. To support a combined commercial and Starlink launch cadence as ambitious as SpaceX’s in 2020, a heavy reliance on booster reuse – particularly with a focus on speed – was going to be a necessity. As a result of the unplanned loss of four Falcon Block 5 boosters between December 2018 and March 2020, SpaceX’s reuse-oriented decision to slow first stage production saw the company’s fleet of flightworthy boosters rapidly shrink.
Thankfully, Crew Dragon’s Demo-2 astronaut launch debut and the aforementioned GPS III SV03 mission introduced two new boosters – B1058 and B1060 – into circulation, resulting in a booster flight likely just large enough to support the lower bound of SpaceX’s 2020 launch ambitions. In late 2019 and early 2020, SpaceX executives revealed plans for anywhere from 24 to 36 launches this year – roughly two-thirds of which would be internal Starlink missions.
As the first Falcon 9 booster to be permitted to land after an operational National Security Space Launch (NSSL), B1060 would have been the perfect choice to support the first booster reuse during a US Air Force or National Reconnaissance Office launch. Much like NASA’s first launch on a flight-proven Falcon 9, though, that pathfinder qualification process would have likely necessitated 6+ months of inspections, reviews, and repairs. If not the first NSSL-sponsored reuse, B1060 would have also been a prime booster option for a more conservative customer or a high-value mission later this year or early next.
Instead, barely two months after its launch debut, SpaceX assigned B1060 to launch the 12th batch of Starlink satellites, pushing the internet constellation over the 700-satellite mark. In simple terms, the move implies that SpaceX is pushing as hard as ever to launch as many times as possible this year. As of now, SpaceX has launched 16 times in a bit more than eight months, averaging almost exactly two launches per month. If SpaceX continues that pace, it will beat its current annual record of 21 launches with ~24. If the company sustains the pace its kept over the last ~90 days, it could complete as many as 28 launches this year.
SpaceX’s September manifest certainly leans towards the latter option. Aside from two more Starlink missions scheduled in mid and late September, Falcon 9 booster B1062 is scheduled to debut with another GPS III satellite launch for the US military. Another five commercial missions have feasible launch targets in the fourth quarter, while it’s safe to assume that SpaceX will continue to target at least two Starlink launches per month for the indefinite future. Altogether, SpaceX has at least 15 more missions that will likely be ready to launch before the end of the year – plenty to sate Falcon 9’s ever-growing thirst.
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Tesla Model Y L attracts crowds across China stores
The Tesla Model Y L is shaping up to be a big hit in China.
Tesla has officially rolled out the Model Y L, a six-seat variant of its best-selling SUV, across all showrooms in China, and it is getting a lot of attention from potential buyers.
Images and videos from Tesla stores in China show crowds of people checking out the recently released extended wheelbase all-electric crossover.
Model Y L details
The vehicle, which carries a starting price of RMB 339,000 ($47,180), went live in Tesla China’s configurator this week. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in September, and early media reviews have already been released following the lifting of an embargo.
Unlike a full model refresh, the Model Y L is positioned as a new variant within the existing Model Y lineup. It joins the five-seat rear-wheel drive (RWD) and long-range all-wheel drive (AWD) Model Y variants currently available in China.
The six-seat Model Y L features dual-motor all-wheel drive, a 0–100 km/h time of 4.5 seconds, and an 82.0-kWh battery pack from LG Energy Solution. Its CLTC-rated range reaches 751 km, the highest among Tesla’s Model Y trims.
So far, the reception to the Model Y L appears to be very warm, with photos and videos of stores in locations such as Shanghai and Shenyang showing numerous people checking out the recently released vehicle. Reports from industry watchers in China also suggest that Tesla received about 35,000 orders for the Model Y L on its first day of release.
Market backdrop
The timing of the Model Y L’s release comes as Tesla faces headwinds in China’s competitive SUV segment. Between January and July, Model Y retail sales in the country reached 202,257 units, a 17.15 percent decline compared to the same period last year, according to data cited by CNEVPost. It should be noted, however, that a good portion of this decline was due to the retooling of Tesla’s factories to make way for the new Model Y.
Despite the slowdown, the Model Y remains one of Tesla’s strongest performers globally. By introducing a higher-range, six-seat option, Tesla appears to be positioning the Model Y L as a way to boost demand and appeal to new buyers in a market that was previously only accessible to the much more expensive Model X.
News
Tesla Model Y L gets disappointingly far production date in the United States
Fans of the extended wheelbase six-seater in the United States are in for a long wait.
The Tesla Model Y L is making a lot of waves in the electric vehicle community, but fans of the extended wheelbase six-seater in the United States are in for a long wait.
This was, at least, according to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who provided a disappointingly long timeline for the Model Y L’s production in the United States.
The Model Y L
The Model Y L has received near universal acclaim from electric vehicle enthusiasts and auto reviewers in China alike. Priced at just RMB 339,000 ($47,180) and fitted with a spacious and comfortable cabin, the Model Y L seemed destined to become a segment killer. And since the vehicle is also produced in Tesla’s existing Model Y lines, it seemed like the vehicle would be released worldwide soon.
It was then no surprise that many Tesla community members were keen on asking if the Model Y L will be released in the United States anytime soon. Others also wondered why CEO Elon Musk was very quiet about the vehicle despite all the buzz it was generating. Eventually, Musk did share an update about the Model Y L, but it was not what many expected.
Elon Musk’s update
Amidst the conversations on X about the Model Y L, longtime FSD tester Whole Mars Catalog noted that Elon Musk would not be saying anything about the vehicle until its international release, likely because he would like to avoid an Osbourne Effect on the standard Model Y. Tesla’s sales today are still highly dependent on the standard Model Y, after all, as it is the company’s best-selling vehicle.
Musk responded to the FSD tester, stating that the Model Y L will not start production in the United States until the end of 2026. He also noted that the vehicle might not even make it in America at all, considering Tesla’s focus on self-driving. “This variant of the Model Y doesn’t start production in the US until the end of next year. Might not ever, given the advent of self-driving in America,” Musk wrote in his post.
Musk’s post was received with much disappointment from many X users, some of whom joked that the CEO was risking alienating families with three kids with his comments. The Model Y L, after all, is a legitimate family car that can comfortably seat six, and it seemed like a vehicle that Musk would prioritize considering his stance on people having bigger families. Of course, the CEO might still just be preventing an Osbourne Effect with his comments, but it’s difficult to deny that a 2026 U.S. production date for the Model Y L is still disappointing.
Elon Musk
Tesla’s Elon Musk considers insane Cybertruck mod: ‘Maybe we should make this’
The Cybertruck won’t do what the video shows (at least not in our lifetime), but a very entry-level version of it could be developed.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has teased what could potentially be the company’s next big project, and while it is likely many, many years away, it shows the company truly has its sights set on the craziest things the world has seen.
Musk shared a video created by Grok Imagine, the AI tool that is able to take images and turn them into videos, showing a Cybertruck flying above the clouds and buildings of what appears to be a very futuristic city.
There are also massive robots roaming around in the video, so it is obviously an illustration of what life could look like in several generations.
However, Musk, who does not shy away from some really optimistic projects and goals, shared the video on X and said, “Maybe Tesla should make this.”
Maybe Tesla should make this https://t.co/9ieoqM03Wu
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 19, 2025
What is depicted in the video is not what we’d see Tesla create anytime soon. However, the company could potentially engineer something to make the Cybertruck hover, as it plans to do with the Roadster.
Of course, this is likely a huge “if” considering the current state of the car industry. Vehicles are becoming more advanced with every passing day as companies like Tesla, Waymo, and others are working to sort out things like autonomous and driverless travel.
Tesla has been working on somewhat of a similar idea with the Roadster, a vehicle that has been delayed on several occasions because of Musk’s spectacular imagination. Earlier this year, Tesla’s Chief Designer, Franz von Holzhausen, revealed Musk wanted to push the limits of that vehicle even more.
It seems it could be on the way soon, considering Tesla has teased an “epic” demo for the car, which could come before the end of the year.
Tesla has been working to make the Roadster hover, using SpaceX cold gas thrusters. It will also utilize these for what could be an incredibly fast 1.1-second 0-60 MPH acceleration rate that has been teased countless times.
This project that Musk is teasing with the Cybertruck is likely one that we will not see in our lifetimes. However, this is just one example of the outlandish ideas Musk continues to tease for Tesla in the future.
Tesla Model Y L attracts crowds across China stores
Tesla Model Y L gets disappointingly far production date in the United States
Tesla’s Elon Musk considers insane Cybertruck mod: ‘Maybe we should make this’
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