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SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft photobombed in orbit by solar eclipse
On December 26th, SpaceX’s second-to-last Cargo Dragon spacecraft was photobombed in orbit by the shadow cast on Earth by a solar eclipse, likely a little over a week before the vehicle is set to reenter the atmosphere and splash down in the Pacific Ocean.
Cargo Dragon lifted off atop a rare new Falcon 9 booster – B1059 – on December 5th, carrying around 2600 kg (5800 lb) of cargo inside on the flight-proven capsules third launch into Earth orbit. After a quick three-day journey from its parking orbit to the International Space Station (ISS), Dragon was successfully captured by the station’s astronauts with a robotic arm and berthed to the orbital outpost, where the crew quickly unloaded its cargo of food, consumables, science, and equipment.
Shortly after liftoff, Falcon 9 B1059 completed its first successful landing – a bit of a surprise ordeal aboard drone ship Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) – and the relatively gentle reentry and trajectory should mean that the booster can be turned around almost immediately for its next launch. B1059 is thus a prime candidate for reuse on a future NASA mission and could very well support Cargo Dragon’s next space station resupply mission (CRS-20) as early as March 2020.
For a number of reasons, the spacecraft’s recent success is a touch bittersweet.
Notably, CRS-19 is the second to last orbital mission scheduled for SpaceX’s original Dragon spacecraft, which debuted in orbit in December 2010, becoming the first commercial spacecraft to successfully reenter and be recovered intact. Less than a year and a half later, Cargo Dragon became the world’s first commercial spacecraft to successful rendezvous and berth with the International Space Station (ISS).
The rest, as they say, is history. Five months later, SpaceX launched Cargo Dragon’s first official mission under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program, known as CRS-1. Aside from a June 2015 launch vehicle failure that prevented Cargo Dragon from reaching orbit on its CRS-7 mission, SpaceX has successfully completed every resupply mission that managed to reach orbit, delivering more than 43 metric tons (95,000 lb) of supplies to the space station and the astronauts aboard it.
There have been several technical challenges over the years but every Cargo Dragon that reached orbit successfully completed its space station resupply mission and was recovered intact from the ocean surface after reentering Earth’s atmosphere. SpaceX has matured and improved almost every aspect of the spacecraft over the nine years it’s been flying, substantially upgrading its PICA-X heat shield, improving navigation sensors, upgrading its reusability, testing Crew Dragon and Starship hardware, and more.
Cargo Dragon has without a doubt been one of SpaceX’s biggest successes, combining with the company’s exceptionally capable and affordable Falcon 9 rocket to enable reliable cargo resupply missions, while also continuing to be the only way that NASA (or anyone alse) can return substantial non-human payloads back to Earth. Thankfully, although the spacecraft’s exceptional track record is set to come to an end after its next launch, the Cargo Dragon lineage will continue to supply the space station in the form of a modified version of Crew Dragon (i.e. Dragon 2).
On December 26th, SpaceX’s CRS-19 Cargo Dragon – attached to the International Space Station (ISS) – was photobombed by the shadow produced on Earth’s surface by an annular solar eclipse. With any luck, the spacecraft’s first upgraded successor will take over and begin orbital resupply launches as early as August 2020, setting SpaceX up for at least another four or so years of Dragon launches.
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Tesla has officially launched the Model Y L in the United States and Puerto Rico for $61,990. It is the longer-wheelbase version of the Model Y, and has been available in China since last year.
Tesla brings the Model Y L to the U.S. just months after it phased out the only pure SUV in its lineup, the Model X. It is slightly longer than the Model Y configurations that are already available in the U.S., and features a three-row, six-seat setup with Captain’s Chairs being among the many features that make this a truly fantastic offering.
The Model Y L is priced competitively at $61,990, and features 325 miles of range and a 0-60 MPH in just 4.4 seconds.
Tesla also added a handful of new features that are not available in even the Premium Model Y. Here’s a full list of its features:
- Heated/Ventilated Front Seats with Powered Thigh Cushion
- Heated/Ventilated Captain’s Seats in Second Row with Powered Armrests & One-Touch Fold
- Heated Third-Row Seats with Power Recline, One-Touch Fold & Child Seat Anchors
- Improved Airflow, Increased Efficiency, More Range
- 89 cubic feet of trunk space
- Upgraded Acoustic Glass and Suspension to Minimize Road Noise
- Adaptive Damping for a Smooth, Stable Ride
- Staggered Tires for Enhanced Grip
- Larger Tailgate for Better Rear Visibility and Bigger Windows Overall
- 16″ First Row and 8″ Second Row Touchscreens
- 19-Speaker Immersive Tesla Audio
- 50W Wireless Charging Pads with Active Cooling and Charging Ports for All Other Seats
- FSD Supervised and Integrated Grok AI
Tesla is also delivering these first units as a “Launch Series,” which comes with additional features, such as:
- Door Trim Puddle Lights
- Suede Dashboard Wing
- Exterior and Interior Badging
- Floor Mats
- Sill Plates
The launch of the Model Y L in the U.S. marks a huge offering from Tesla to U.S. consumers. People have been calling for Tesla to bring a larger car to the U.S., and it needed it more than ever now that the Model X is gone.
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- Credit: Tesla
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- Credit: Tesla
It is a huge accomplishment for Tesla to get the Model Y L to the U.S., and after reporting strong deliveries today, it will be interesting to see how this car impacts future quarterly delivery reports.
Deliveries for the Model Y L “Launch Series” are slated for September or October of this year.
Tesla just told us twice that the Model Y L is coming to the U.S., and two social media posts definitely just tipped the company’s hand, as if they wanted it to be any other way.
The two social media posts basically confirm that the slightly longer version of the Model Y will be heading to the United States soon, and many have speculated that the company could launch the vehicle as soon as this weekend.
The first post was directly from Tesla, and it showed an incredibly long Dachshund, with words above that said, “Looking forward to the long weekend.”
Looking forward to the long weekend pic.twitter.com/URzH6zOUdn
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 1, 2026
Anyone who knows Tesla knows the company loves to troll its fans and have fun, and this is a perfect example of that. While not a direct acknowledgement, Tesla is very involved on social media, especially CEO Elon Musk’s platform X, and the company is well aware of what is being discussed within the community.
With recent sightings of Model Y L test mules in California, peeks of the vehicle at Giga Texas, and a large call for the car to come to the U.S., Tesla is simply stoking conversation with this.
However, the company also made another move that was recognized on social media. Tesla has a large gallery that includes photos of its products so media and others can use them. This gallery applies to the U.S. market specifically, unless otherwise specified.
Tesla uploaded a Model Y L to the Gallery last night:
This looks like a Model Y L https://t.co/TpnBwrLmH9
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 2, 2026
This seems to be another indication that the Model Y L is coming to the United States.
Musk said last year that the Model Y L could make its way to the United States late this year, but it was not something that was set in stone by Tesla. The company definitely needs to establish something in the SUV market that is larger than the Model Y, and the Model Y L might be the answer.
Even still, there are consumers out there who would love Tesla to develop something even larger, like a competitor to the Tahoe or Expedition. Tesla has not really given much of an indication that it will go in that direction.
Tesla is using the vehicles’ internal microphones to improve build quality, Vice President of Engineering Lars Moravy revealed recently.
It’s no secret that Tesla is always finding ways to make its manufacturing operations more efficient, accurate, and valuable. Constantly trying to make its cars better, the company has never placed any restrictions on what it will do to improve everything from panel gaps to paint.
As Teslas have been driving autonomously on the property of the Gigafactory Texas plant for a while now, Moravy revealed to Herbert Ong in a new interview that cars rolling off production lines now autonomously navigate themselves through a bumps, squeaks, and rattles (BSR) portion of the line. This helps to identify any loose or improperly installed internal parts.
The cabin’s microphones, which are used for a variety of things in ownership, simultaneously monitor any noises inside the vehicle while it rolls through the BSR portion of the production line. Moravy actually revealed that Tesla is trying to build “Full Self-Hearing,” an AI system that will detect minor imperfections so they can be corrected before delivery.
It’s no secret that build quality is something that Tesla struggled with as it scaled to a fully massive production operation that manufactures over 1.6 million vehicles per year. However, in recent years, especially, there have not been as many complaints. Tesla has truly improved upon its build quality and paint quality over the past several years, especially in the U.S.
Tesla’s ‘megacasts’ are key to massive build quality improvements
While those improvements have been evident, there are still some complaints; no automaker is perfect with this. But this step will now ensure that every single car that rolls off the production lines at Gigafactory Texas will be void of any creaks, squeaks, or squeals when it leaves the factory.
This measure is one of the most unique we’ve seen in terms of a strategy to avoid build quality issues, but it is not exclusive to Tesla.
Ford uses acoustic analysis AI to find abnormalities in seat motors, climate control units, and other components. Suppliers and OEMs will also use microphone arrays or particle velocity sensors in end-of-line stations.
The full interview with Lars Moravy is available below:
🚨 If you’re a Tesla investor, this is one interview you don’t want to skip. The full video posted below.
Jeff Lutz @thejefflutz and I sat down with Tesla VP of Engineering Lars Moravy, and it was packed with insights!
A few of the biggest takeaways:
• Cybercab is expected to… pic.twitter.com/fhYSr2dCqP
— Herbert Ong (@herbertong) July 1, 2026
Tesla brings Model Y L ‘Launch Series’ to the U.S. at $61,990
Tesla just told us twice that Model Y L is coming to the U.S.
