News
SpaceX continues water landing test in latest Space Station resupply mission
SpaceX has completed their second launch in less than four days, and the company’s 14th Cargo Dragon mission has successfully made it to a safe parking orbit where it will make its way to the International Space Station over the next two days.
Carrying nearly 5,800 pounds of perishables, experiments, and scientific equipment to be bolted to the outside of the ISS, this particular Cargo Dragon flew once before in 2016, while the booster that lifted it above Earth’s thin atmosphere was tasked with launching CRS-12 in August 2017. According to Jessica Jensen, SpaceX’s Director of Dragon Mission Management, this particularly Dragon capsule was the first to fly with upgraded water sealing, meaning that it was considerably easier (and thus cheaper) for SpaceX to refurbish and refly. The only items that had to be replaced this time around were the heatshield, trunk, and parachutes, and this experience will undoubtedly translate into Dragon 2 (Cargo Dragon), likely ensuring exceptional reuse characteristics for that the company’s next-gen capsule.
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- CRS-8 also happened to mark the first successful ASDS recovery of a Falcon 9 booster. (SpaceX)
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- Booster 1039 lands after successfully launching CRS-12’s Cargo Dragon into orbit. 1039 completed its final mission on Monday afternoon, April 2. (SpaceX)
Sadly, CRS-14’s doubly flight-proven launch also marked yet another expended booster – B1039 happened to be the first Block 4 version of Falcon 9’s stage to fly a mission. Jensen described that SpaceX – accustomed to making these decisions on a case-by-case basis – had chosen to expend this particular booster after concluding that the benefits of testing extreme booster trajectories and recovery profiles outweighed the difficulty (and cost) of refurbishing a Block 4 booster for a third launch. In this case, B1039 would have been the best option if SpaceX had any desire to fly a booster more than twice before the introduction of the purpose-driven, next-generation Block 5 reusability upgrade – Block 4 was clearly not built to fly more than twice without an uneconomical amount of refurbishment.
https://twitter.com/_TomCross_/status/980912458280947722
While no specific details were given and live coverage shown of the soft-landing, it’s presumed that B1039 continued in the footsteps of water landings that followed GovSat-1 and Hispasat 30W-6 in January 2018 and March 2018. These uniquely aggressive landing attempts are all believed to have ignited three Merlin 1D engines rather than the single engine typically ignited for landing burns, providing a more efficient use of propellant reserves at the cost of extreme acceleration (G) forces and far slimmer margins of error. The ultimate promise of these tests, if successful, is to allow SpaceX the option of recovering boosters during missions with heavier payloads and higher orbits.
SpaceX continues a cautious regiment of tests for the newest Falcon 9 upgrade, Block 5. (Reddit /u/HollywoodSX)
The imminent NET April 24 inaugural launch of SpaceX’s rapid reuse Falcon 9 “Block 5” will mark the beginning of a new era of rocketry for SpaceX, where expendable missions are likely to become a rarity. Expending a single Block 5 booster could fairly be perceived as throwing away the potential revenue and income from anywhere from 5-100 future re-flights. As such, SpaceX has every reason to expend non-Block 5 boosters with the hope of ensuring that fewer new-generation rockets end up expended after launch.
This rocket was meant to test very high retrothrust landing in water so it didn’t hurt the droneship, but amazingly it has survived. We will try to tow it back to shore. pic.twitter.com/hipmgdnq16
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 31, 2018
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Intriguingly, Jensen also noted in a prelaunch briefing that SpaceX’s Cargo Dragons are certified for as many as three orbital reuses – a possibility as SpaceX steps towards completing all 20 of its contracted CRS-1 missions, the final five of which are scheduled to resupply the ISS between now and early 2020. After the final CRS-1 launch, NASA has already awarded SpaceX and Orbital ATK contracts for CRS-2, a second Commercial Resupply Services contract that will begin in 2020 and fly on OATK’s upgraded Cygnus and SpaceX Dragon 2, potentially repurposing recovered Crew capsules in the case of SpaceX.
Up next on the SpaceX calendar are a number of conferences and presentations over the next two or three weeks, followed by SpaceX NASA TESS mission on April 16 and the debut of Falcon 9 Block 5 for the launch of Bangabandhu-1, April 24. SES-12 may be launched sometime in early May or late April, and the next West coast launch of Iridium-6/GRACE-FO is expected to occur NET May 10.
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- SpaceX technicians work at the base of Falcon 9 B1039 ahead of launch, CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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- CRS-14. (Tom Cross)
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News
SpaceX just launched a secret payload from California
SpaceX launched a classified Space Force mission from Vandenberg, revealing almost nothing about its payload.
SpaceX launched a classified Falcon 9 mission for the U.S. Space Force from Vandenberg Space Force Base on Saturday night, and the government released almost nothing about what was on board. The mission, designated USSF-366, lifted off from Space Launch Complex 4E with a window that opened at 9:52 p.m. ET and ran into the early hours of Sunday, according to SpaceX’s own mission page, which described the payload only as classified. SpaceX confirmed the launch on its X account and pointed viewers to a livestream that began roughly ten minutes before liftoff.
Watch Falcon 9 launch the USSF-366 mission from pad 4E in California https://t.co/FFEzeYOds1
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 16, 2026
The lack of detail did not stop analysts from filling in the blanks. Independent tracking of the rocket’s stage drop zones matched the pattern SpaceX has used on previous Starlink Group 15 missions, according to reporting from Outer Space Today, which pointed to Starshield as the likely payload rather than a one off government satellite. Starshield is SpaceX’s national security product, a version of the Starlink satellite bus built to Pentagon specifications for earth observation, communications and hosted payloads. Unlike consumer Starlink, government agencies do not have to disclose what Starshield satellites are actually doing once they reach orbit.
USSF-366 is the latest entry in a steady flow of classified and semi classified work between SpaceX and the Space Force. The company picked up a $178.5 million task order in April to launch missile tracking satellites for the Space Development Agency, as Teslarati reported at the time, and followed that in July with a $1.6 billion award covering 18 more Falcon 9 missions from Vandenberg through the end of 2027, also detailed by Teslarati. Add those contracts up and SpaceX’s Pentagon business for 2026 alone tops $8 billion.
SpaceX scores another massive Pentagon deal to support military satellites
The Falcon 9 that flew Saturday landed back near the launch site, producing the sonic booms that have become routine for residents near Vandenberg. What is less routine is how little the public will likely ever learn about what the rocket carried. SpaceX and the Space Force have not confirmed the Starshield connection, and government satellite programs built on commercial buses rarely get identified beyond a mission number and a general orbit. For a company that live streams almost everything else it does, from Starship test flights to Optimus robot demos, USSF-366 is a reminder that some of SpaceX’s busiest work now happens entirely out of public view.
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On Friday, Tesla launched the Outlet Adapter that enabled Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) energy transfer, meaning owners could essentially utilize their cars as a power source for things like laptops, electric grills, or string lights.
However, even owners of some of the newest builds of the Model Y are finding out that their cars are not compatible with the new $80 accessory, stirring up a new complaint among members of the community.
Tesla launches V2L Outlet Adapter for Premium Model Y in the U.S.
Upon the release of the Outlet Adapter on Friday, I signed into my Tesla account to order the accessory. However, I was met with the dreaded “This product is not compatible with your 2026 Model Y” message at the bottom of the screen.
Some said their accounts also displayed the same message, but they ordered anyway. However, they might be surprised to find that this is no mistake; some of the newest Model Ys do not have the appropriate Power Conversion System (PCS). Mine, which was ordered on this day last year and delivered on August 31, has the old 48A, single-phase PCS.
Vehicles with the new, two-piece PCS are able to utilize V2L features on their cars:
🚨 Looks like you can hit the Parts Catalog and enter your VIN and check to see if your Model Y will be able to use the adapter for V2L.https://t.co/QA9zRk7n2k
h/t to @SawyerMerritt for finding this out.
-I am sad but this isn’t a huge loss. https://t.co/AYpI12QVV9 pic.twitter.com/LRFSrtRywo
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 16, 2026
Obviously, it’s disappointing. Many owners have taken delivery this year and still can not utilize the Outlet Adapter because their cars feature the old PCS:
Took delivery in February of 2026. I have the older one, so not going to work for me pic.twitter.com/RcOVq8gvvT
— Russell (@QuietTesla) August 16, 2026
It looks like if you have one of these older PCS units, you can upgrade, but the parts alone are $1,750, and that’s before Tesla adds labor for installing. It is honestly more logical to get some kind of portable power supply or power station at that point.
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It is great that Tesla has enabled V2L for Model Y vehicles, but it is also unfortunate that vehicles that are less than one year old are not able to take advantage of this awesome new feature.
With that being said, it truly is a first-world problem; can you really complain when Full Self-Driving is available, maintenance is incredibly inexpensive, and the car has been so good through a year of ownership?
Tesla has launched a new Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) Outlet Adapter for Premium Model Y vehicles in the United States, meaning you can now power devices like laptops or light strings with your vehicle’s battery.
It appears the capability will be available for any Model Y Premium trim, including those that were purchased prior to the Adapter being launched. It will also only impact Juniper Model Y vehicles, so the first-gen owners will unfortunately not have access to this capability.
If your Model Y was purchased before Tesla renamed the trim levels to “Premium” and “Standard,” it does not seem to be compatible. My Model Y is technically a Premium build, as it is the Long Range All-Wheel-Drive. However, Tesla says it is not compatible with my vehicle.
🚨 Tesla has launched the Outlet Adapter for Model Y Premium in the U.S., enabling V2L capability for all Premium trims (that’s what it appears to be as it is available for purchase with all Premium trims)
It’s available for $80. 2.4kW max power and rated for 120v, 20A pic.twitter.com/lDxlVIk5s8
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 14, 2026
For $80, you can now utilize your car as a portable charger for small appliances or devices. This is perfect for things like tailgates, concerts, or camping, as you can now plug in devices that you might use. Those string lights for camping? That laptop for the other games that are on at the tailgate?
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They’ll both utilize energy from your Tesla’s battery to be powered. This is the first time Tesla has expanded the capability to vehicles outside of the Model Y Performance and Cybertruck. However, this feature has been highly requested by owners for an extended period of time.
Tesla launched the Outlet Adapter in China last year:
Tesla China rolls out Model Y L V2L adapter, and it’s free for early owners
You will need the Mobile Connector to operate the Outlet Adapter: the Outlet Adapter will plug into the main housing of the Mobile Connector, where the appropriate adapter to charge your vehicle will plug in.
It is rated for 120 volts and 20 amps, and has a max power rating of 2.4kW.
You can buy it here from Tesla for $80.
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SpaceX just launched a secret payload from California
Tesla V2L adapter for Model Y stirs up a new complaint among owners
