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SpaceX Dragon returns astronauts to Earth after record-breaking spaceflight
After spending almost 200 days in orbit, a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft has successfully returned four international Crew-2 astronauts to Earth, marking major firsts both for the company and NASA.
Launched on April 23rd, 2021, NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet, and JAXA astronaut Akihiko Hoshide are now safely back on Earth, marking the successful end of their Crew-2 mission. Unusually, due to poor weather conditions, Crew-2 has returned to Earth before their Crew-3 counterparts and replacements were able to join them at the International Space Station (ISS) and are now scheduled to fill the void left behind no earlier than November 11th after a launch late on November 10th.
Crew-2’s near-flawless undocking, reentry, descent, and splashdown should nevertheless add no additional risk of delay.
For a number of reasons, Crew-2’s safe recovery is a major milestone for SpaceX and spaceflight in general. Most notably, following flight-proven Crew Dragon C206’s flawless second launch earlier this year, Crew-2 is officially the first time an orbital space capsule has twice safely carried humans to and from orbit – and after spending longer in space than any other US crewed spacecraft in history. While there was little reason for doubt, Dragon’s first successful ‘reused’ recovery is nevertheless an absolutely essential and historic milestone for SpaceX, a company that one day aims to routinely launch and land dozens of people at a time on Earth and other planets.
NASA – through its Space Shuttle program – is the only other entity in history to successfully launch and reuse a crewed orbital spacecraft, making SpaceX the second member of perhaps the most exclusive club in all of spaceflight.
Unexpectedly, despite indications from NASA in a recent prelaunch press conference that the maneuver would be skipped to increase schedule flexibility, Crew-2’s Dragon spacecraft ultimately performed the first US space station ‘flyaround’ maneuver in a decade. Astronaut Thomas Pesquet – rapidly becoming one of the best astronaut photographers in recent memory – took the opportunity to capture a number of photos of the ISS. NASA isn’t looking for anything in particular in those photos but they will still assuredly be useful for station engineers.
While numerically flawless, during Crew Dragon C206’s second descent, one of its four main parachutes lagged behind the other three during a process known as parachute inflation. Associate Administrator Kathy Lueders noted the odd appearance of the chute – which eventually expanded to its proper size – in comments shortly after crew egress but she confirmed that Dragon’s descent rate was nominal, meaning that the apparent nonconformance had zero impact on Dragon’s recovery and splashdown. The chute behavior – and Crew-2 recovery performance in general – will be reviewed in Crew-3’s launch readiness review (LRR) as early as November 9th.
SpaceX’s recovery team continues to refine Crew Dragon recovery procedures and Crew-2 certainly continued that trend. An hour and fifteen minutes after the spacecraft was in orbit and traveling seven kilometers (4.5 mi) per second and less than an hour after splashdown, all four Crew-2 astronauts were safely removed from Dragon and moved to medical facilities. All four will now be prepared to return by helicopter to dedicated facilities on land.
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Tesla arsonist who burned Cybertruck sees end of FAFO journey
The man has now reached the “Find Out” stage.
A Mesa, Arizona man has been sentenced to five years in federal prison for setting fire to a Tesla location and vehicle in a politically motivated arson attack, federal prosecutors have stated.
The April 2025 incident destroyed a Tesla Cybertruck, endangered first responders, and triggered mandatory sentencing under federal arson laws.
A five-year sentence
U.S. District Judge Diane J. Humetewa sentenced Ian William Moses, 35, of Mesa, Arizona, to 5 years in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release for maliciously damaging property and vehicles by means of fire. Moses pleaded guilty in October to all five counts brought by a federal grand jury. Restitution will be determined at a hearing scheduled for April 13, 2026.
As per court records, surveillance footage showed Moses arriving at a Tesla store in Mesa shortly before 2 a.m. on April 28, 2025, carrying a gasoline can and backpack. Investigators stated that he placed fire starter logs near the building, poured gasoline on the structure and three vehicles, and ignited the fire. The blaze destroyed a Tesla Cybertruck. Moses fled the scene on a bicycle and was arrested by Mesa police about a quarter mile away, roughly an hour later.
Authorities said Moses was still wearing the same clothing seen on camera at the time of his arrest and was carrying a hand-drawn map marking the dealership’s location. Moses also painted the word “Theif” on the walls of the Tesla location, prompting jokes from social media users and Tesla community members.
The “Finding Out” stage
U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine noted that Moses’ sentence reflects the gravity of his crime. He also highlighted that arson is never acceptable.
“Arson can never be an acceptable part of American politics. Mr. Moses’ actions endangered the public and first responders and could have easily turned deadly. This five-year sentence reflects the gravity of these crimes and makes clear that politically fueled attacks on Arizona’s communities and businesses will be met with full accountability.”
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell echoed the same sentiments, stating that regardless of Moses’ sentiments towards Elon Musk, his actions are not defensible.
“This sentence sends a clear message: violence and intimidation have no place in our community. Setting fire to a business in retaliation for political or personal grievances is not protest, it is a crime. Our community deserves to feel safe, and this sentence underscores that Maricopa County will not tolerate political violence in any form.”
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Tesla says its Texas lithium refinery is now operational and unlike anything in North America
Elon Musk separately described the site as both the most advanced and the largest lithium refinery in the United States.
Tesla has confirmed that its Texas lithium refinery is now operational, marking a major milestone for the company’s U.S. battery supply chain. In a newly released video, Tesla staff detailed how the facility converts raw spodumene ore directly into battery-grade lithium hydroxide, making it the first refinery of its kind in North America.
Elon Musk separately described the site as both the most advanced and the largest lithium refinery in the United States.
A first-of-its-kind lithium refining process
In the video, Tesla staff at the Texas lithium refinery near Corpus Christi explained that the facility processes spodumene, a lithium-rich hard-rock ore, directly into battery-grade lithium hydroxide on site. The approach bypasses intermediate refining steps commonly used elsewhere in the industry.
According to the staff, spodumene is processed through kilns and cooling systems before undergoing alkaline leaching, purification, and crystallization. The resulting lithium hydroxide is suitable for use in batteries for energy storage and electric vehicles. Tesla employees noted that the process is simpler and less expensive than traditional refining methods.
Staff at the facility added that the process eliminates hazardous byproducts typically associated with lithium refining. “Our process is more sustainable than traditional methods and eliminates hazardous byproducts, and instead produces a co-product named anhydrite, used in concrete mixes,” an employee noted.
Musk calls the facility the largest lithium refinery in America
The refinery’s development timeline has been very impressive. The project moved from breaking ground in 2023 to integrated plant startup in 2025 by running feasibility studies, design, and construction in parallel. This compressed schedule enabled the fastest time-to-market for a refinery using this type of technology. This 2026, the facility has become operational.
Elon Musk echoed the significance of the project in posts on X, stating that “the largest Lithium refinery in America is now operational.” In a separate comment, Musk described the site as “the most advanced lithium refinery in the world” and emphasized that the facility is “very clean.”
By bringing large-scale lithium hydroxide production online in Texas, Tesla is positioning itself to reduce reliance on foreign refining capacity while supporting its growth in battery and vehicle production. The refinery also complements Tesla’s nascent domestic battery manufacturing efforts, which could very well be a difference maker in the market.
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Tesla Optimus V3 gets early third-party feedback, and it’s eye-opening
Jason Calacanis’ remarks, which were shared during a discussion at CES 2026, offered one of the first third-party impressions of the yet-to-be-unveiled robot
Angel investor and entrepreneur Jason Calacanis shared some insights after he got an early look at Tesla’s upcoming Optimus V3. His remarks, which were shared during a discussion at CES 2026, offered one of the first third-party impressions of the yet-to-be-unveiled robot.
Calacanis’ comments were shared publicly on X, and they were quite noteworthy.
The angel investor stated that he visited Tesla’s Optimus lab on a Sunday morning and observed that the place was buzzing with energy. The investor then shared a rare, shocking insight. As per Calacanis, Optimus V3 will be so revolutionary that people will probably not even remember that Tesla used to make cars in the future.
“I don’t want to name drop, but two Sundays ago, I went to Tesla with Elon and I went and visited the Optimus lab. There were a large number of people working on a Sunday at 10 a.m. and I saw Optimus 3. I can tell you now, nobody will remember that Tesla ever made a car,” he noted.
The angel investor also reiterated the primary advantage of Optimus, and how it could effectively change the world.
“They will only remember the Optimus and that he is going to make a billion of those, and it is going to be the most transformative technology product ever made in the history of humanity, because what LLMs are gonna enable those products to do is understand the world and then do things in the world that we don’t want to do. I believe there will be a 1:1 ratio of humans to Optimus, and I think he’s already won,” he said.
While Calacanis’ comments were clearly opinion-driven, they stood out as among the first from a non-Tesla employee about Optimus V3. Considering his reaction to the humanoid robot, perhaps Elon Musk’s predictions for Optimus V3 might not be too far-fetched at all.
Tesla has been careful with its public messaging around Optimus V3’s development stage. Musk has previously stated on X that Optimus V3 has not yet been revealed publicly, clarifying that images and videos of the robot online still show Optimus V2 and V2.5, not the next-generation unit. As for Calacanis’ recent comments, however, Musk responded with a simple “Probably true” in a post on X.
Tesla arsonist who burned Cybertruck sees end of FAFO journey
Tesla says its Texas lithium refinery is now operational and unlike anything in North America
