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SpaceX surprises after recovering spacecraft 'trunk' in one piece
In a surprise twist, SpaceX has recovered an expendable ‘trunk’ that launched with Crew Dragon on its January 19th In-Flight Abort (IFA) test, in which the spacecraft successfully escaped from an exploding Falcon 9 rocket.
While recovering pieces of Dragon’s disposable trunk would not have been shocking, SpaceX has returned this particular Crew Dragon trunk to shore in a condition that can only be described as unscathed. The surprise came first on the evening of January 19th, when two separate SpaceX ships returned to Port Canaveral — first and foremost bringing Crew Dragon capsule C205 back to dry land for inspection and possible reuse. However, a separate ship – GO Navigator – followed the ship carrying Crew Dragon not long after, revealing a shockingly intact Dragon trunk on its deck.
At 10:30 am EST (15:30 UTC) on January 19th, Falcon 9 booster B1046, an expendable upper stage, and the newest Crew Dragon spacecraft lifted off from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Launch Complex 39A (Pad 39A) on the spacecraft’s second-ever integrated launch. Designed to push Crew Dragon’s abort systems to their limits, the spacecraft ignited its SuperDraco thrusters around 85 seconds after liftoff, soaring away from a supersonic Falcon 9 and triggering the rocket’s catastrophic (but expected) explosion around 10 seconds later.
A bit like pushing against a wall, Crew Dragon had to fight uphill against a continuous supersonic blast of air to escape the Falcon 9 rocket that launched it, likely adding tens of thousands of pounds (several dozen metric tons) of additional pressure spread out over the top of the capsule. The spacecraft and its detachable trunk section – carrying a solar array, radiators, and four fins – appeared to survive the experience without issue.
The capsule’s SuperDraco engines shut off after about 10 seconds, leaving the integrated spacecraft to coast to an apogee of ~40 km (25 mi), where it finally detached its trunk (pictured above). Designed to be disposable, Crew Dragon features a trunk functionally similar to the one SpaceX has flown almost 20 times on Cargo Dragon (Dragon 1) missions. Crew Dragon’s trunk looks quite a bit different, stretching taller and featuring an interesting conformal solar array (vs. Dragon 1’s deployable panels), as well as radiators (white rectangular panels) the spacecraft needs to maintain thermal equilibrium while in space.
Nominally, Crew Dragon and Cargo Dragon launch on Falcon 9, reach orbit, and go about their business of delivering astronauts and cargo to and from the International Space Station (ISS). After completing their given mission, the trunk section is eventually detached an hour or two before one last reentry burn, eventually returning the spacecraft to Earth. The trunk is thus left in low Earth orbit (LEO), eventually reentering on its own days, weeks, or months later and vaporizing into plasma before it hits Earth’s surface.
While it’s thus surprising that Crew Dragon C205’s trunk section – built primarily out of carbon composites like Falcon 9’s payload fairing and interstage – survived its In-Flight Abort mission more or less intact, the unexpected recovery sadly doesn’t mean that SpaceX has any plans to try to routinely recover or reuse the hardware. If Dragon trunks detached well before orbit, SpaceX might reconsider, but that would defeat their purpose of providing Dragons with power and thermal management while in orbit.
Surviving a terminal-velocity ocean splashdown is certainly no mean feat, but surviving an orbital-velocity atmospheric reentry is magnitudes more challenging, although SpaceX is certainly cognizant of the trade-off. Starship, for example, is expected to include thermal management and power generation systems as an integral part of the (nominally) fully-reusable spaceship and upper stage. At the scale of Crew Dragon, it’s just hard to rationalize doubling or tripling the mass of the spacecraft’s trunk just to tack on a complex recovery system.
All told, both NASA and SpaceX have since indicated that preliminary telemetry from Crew Dragon’s In-Flight Abort test paints an extremely positive picture and effectively confirmed that the test was a total success. With a little luck, it’s safe to say that Crew Dragon will be sacrificing a trunk section in orbit before returning NASA astronauts to Earth just a few months from now.
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Tesla shares epic 2025 recap video, confirms start of Cybercab production
The cinematic montage, posted by the official Tesla account on X, celebrated the company’s progress in EVs, energy, and Robotaxi development.
Tesla has released an epic year-in-review video for 2025, recapping some of its major achievements from refreshed models to autonomy breakthroughs and production ramps.
The cinematic montage, posted by the official Tesla account on X, celebrated the company’s progress in EVs, energy, and Robotaxi development while looking ahead to an even bigger 2026.
Tesla’s 2025 highlights recap
Tesla has had a busy 2025, as highlighted in the recap video. The video opened with Elon Musk explaining the company’s pursuit of sustainable abundance. A number of milestones were then highlighted, such as the rollout of FSD v14, Optimus’ numerous demos, the opening of the Tesla Diner in Hollywood, LA, the completion of the world’s first autonomous car delivery, and the launch of the Robotaxi network in Austin and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Tesla also highlighted several of its accomplishments over the year. As per the company, the Model Y was the year’s best-selling vehicle globally again, and Teslas became more affordable than ever thanks to the Model 3 and Model Y Standard. Other key models were also rolled out, such as the refreshed Model S and X, as well as the new Model Y, the new Model Y Performance, and the six-seat, extended wheelbase Model Y L.
The Megablock was also unveiled during the year, and the Supercharger Network grew by 18%. Over 1 million Powerwalls were also installed during the year, and the Cybertruck became the first EV truck to get both an IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award and an NHTSA 5-Star safety rating.
Cybercab production confirmed
Interestingly enough, Tesla also confirmed in its 2025 recap video that the production of the Cybercab has started. This bodes well for the vehicle, as it could result in the vehicle really being mass-produced in the first half of 2026. Elon Musk confirmed during the 2025 Annual Shareholder Meeting that Cybercab production should earnestly start around April 2026.
Musk has also noted that the Cybercab will be Tesla’s highest-volume vehicle yet, with the company aiming for an annual production rate of about 2 million units. “If you’ve seen the design of the Cybercab line, it doesn’t look like a normal car manufacturing line,” Musk said earlier this year. “It looks like a really high-speed consumer electronics line. In fact, the line will move so fast that actually people can’t even get close to it.”
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Tesla Cybercab is changing the look of Austin’s roads, and it’s not even in production yet
Videos and photos showed the sleek, two-seat autonomous vehicles navigating traffic.
Even before entering production, Tesla’s Cybercab is already transforming the appearance of Austin’s streets, with multiple prototypes spotted testing in downtown areas recently.
Videos and photos showed the sleek, two-seat autonomous vehicles navigating traffic. Interestingly enough, the vehicles were equipped with temporary steering wheels and human safety drivers.
Recent Cybercab sightings
Over the weekend, enthusiasts captured footage of two Cybercabs driving together in central Austin, their futuristic silhouettes standing out amid regular traffic. While the vehicles featured temporary steering wheels and side mirrors for now, they retained their futuristic, production-intent exterior design.
Industry watcher Sawyer Merritt shared one of the vehicles’ videos, noting the increasing frequency of the autonomous two-seater’s sightings.
Previewing the autonomous future
Sightings of the Cybercab have been ramping in several key areas across the United States in recent weeks. Sightings include units at Apple’s Visitor Center in California, the Fremont factory test track, and in Austin’s streets.
The increased activity suggests that Tesla is in overdrive, validating the autonomous two-seater ahead of its planned volume production. Elon Musk confirmed at the 2025 Shareholder Meeting that manufacturing begins around April 2026 with ambitious targets, and during an All-Hands meeting earlier this year, Musk hinted that ultimately, Tesla’s factories should be able to produce one Cybercab every 10 seconds.
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Tesla celebrates 9 million vehicles produced globally
The achievement, announced by Tesla Asia on X, celebrated not just the Shanghai team’s output but the company’s cumulative production across all its factories worldwide.
Tesla has achieved a new milestone, rolling out its nine millionth vehicle worldwide from Giga Shanghai.
The achievement, announced by Tesla Asia on X, celebrated not just the Shanghai team’s output but the company’s cumulative production across all its factories worldwide. The milestone came as 2025 drew to a close, and it inspired praise from some of the company’s key executives.
Tesla’s 9 million vehicle milestone
The commemorative photo from Tesla Asia featured the Giga Shanghai team assembled on the factory floor, surrounding the milestone Model Y unit, which looked pristine in white. The image was captioned: “Our 9 millionth vehicle globally has just rolled off the production line at Giga Shanghai. Thanks to our owners and supporters around the world.”
Senior Vice President of Automotive Tom Zhu praised Tesla’s factory teams for the remarkable milestone. He also shared his gratitude to Tesla owners for their support. “Congrats to all Tesla factories for this amazing milestone! Thanks to our owners for your continued support!” Zhu wrote in a post on X.
Giga Shanghai’s legacy
Tesla’s nine million vehicle milestone is especially impressive considering that just 207 days ago, the company announced that it had built its eight millionth car globally. The eight millionth Tesla, a red Model Y, was built in Giga Berlin. The fact that Tesla was able to build a million cars in less than seven months is quite an accomplishment.
Giga Shanghai, Tesla’s largest factory by volume, has been instrumental to the company’s overall operations, having reached four million cumulative vehicles earlier in 2025. The plant produces Model 3 and Model Y for both domestic Chinese and export markets, making it the company’s primary vehicle export hub.
Tesla shares epic 2025 recap video, confirms start of Cybercab production
Tesla Cybercab is changing the look of Austin’s roads, and it’s not even in production yet
