SpaceX
SpaceX fairing catcher Mr. Steven heads for Panama Canal after one last drop test
Iconic fairing recovery vessel Mr. Steven appears to have quietly departed for SpaceX’s Florida launch facilities a few days after completing (successfully or not) one final controlled fairing catch test in the Pacific Ocean.
While bittersweet for those that have closely followed the vessel’s development and many attempted Falcon fairing recoveries, this move should ultimately give Mr. Steven around three times as many opportunities to attempt fairing recoveries thanks to SpaceX’s significantly higher East Coast launch cadence.
Mr Steven docking last night after another helicopter drop test, fairing half aboard. #spacex @Teslarati pic.twitter.com/1uMm8ktzWY
— Pauline Acalin (@w00ki33) January 26, 2019
Under SpaceX lease since late 2017, the company moved the vessel to California and modified it with its first net and set of arms around December 2017. Mr. Steven attempted his first Falcon fairing catch – each half worth more than $3M – in February 2018 after the launch of Earth imaging satellite PAZ and two SpaceX Starlink prototypes, thus beginning a string of five unsuccessful recovery attempts for West Coast Falcon 9 launches. The lack of success has most certainly not been for a lack of trying, exemplified in large part by Mr. Steven’s frequent net and arm upgrades over the last year, culminating in the installation of four massive arms, a vast primary net, and a smaller secondary net below it.
Recent fairing recovery test with Mr. Steven. So close! pic.twitter.com/DFSCfBnM0Y
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) January 8, 2019
SpaceX engineers and technicians repeatedly managed to get Falcon fairing halves – autonomously guided by GPS after deploying parafoils – within 50 to a few hundred feet during several of those five post-launch attempts. In the last few months of 2018, SpaceX also began a program of controlled fairing drop tests, where a helicopter would lift a fairing half 5,000-10,000 feet up before releasing it for Mr. Steven. A recent drop test organized in either late-December or early-January saw the parasailing fairing half get so close to a successful catch that its parafoil rigging actually appeared to get tangled on (or at least bump) the edge of Mr. Steven’s net, spanning an area of around 3000 square meters (~30,000 sq ft).
Barring a continuation of SpaceX’s helicopter drop test program on the East Coast, Mr. Steven’s final controlled fairing recovery attempt occurred on January 25th, perhaps less than four days before the ship departed for Florida. After maneuvering wildly and reaching 28 mph (45 km/h) – the fastest speed yet clocked – on his trip back to port, Mr. Steven arrived with a fairing half tantalizingly cradled in the ship’s new secondary net, a perfectly ambiguous state that could indicate a successful catch and net transfer or a missed catch and ocean retrieval, with the smaller net used as an ad-hoc shock absorber during his sprint to port.
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- The apparent fairing-grabbing mechanism or robot spotted aboard the SpaceX-leased vessel Mr. Steven. (Reddit /u/ vshie)
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- Not nearly enough net, as it turned out. (Pauline Acalin, May 2018)
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- Mr Steven testing his new net in a series of sea trials, July 11
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- Mr. Steven returned to Port of San Pedro around on October 8th after a day spent at sea, apparently with a Falcon fairing half in tow. This is the second known time that a fairing has been in Mr. Steven’s net. The fairing was eventually lifted off around noon the following day. (Pauline Acalin)
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- Mr. Steven was captured performing tests with a duo of fairings and nets at its Port of LA berth, January 22nd. (Pauline Acalin)
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- Prior to his Panama Canal exit, Mr. Steven barely missed 2-3 successful Falcon fairing catches during several controlled drop tests. (SpaceX)
Back to Port Canaveral
Prior to Mr. Steven’s California station and arm/net upgrade, the vessel was introduced to SpaceX in Florida as a sort of faster version of the slower service vessels already used to support drone ship deployments and recover fairing halves (or shards) out of the ocean. Although it remains entirely possible that Mr. Steven’s abrupt journey towards southern Mexico is a false alarm, it appears quite likely that the vessel will ultimately end up back where it started its SpaceX journey. After returning to Port Canaveral, Mr. Steven should be able to support a range of post-launch fairing recovery attempts thanks to SpaceX’s consistently-busy East Coast launch schedule.
At his current cruising speed of ~18 knots (21 mph/35 km/h), Mr. Steven will take at least 9-10 days (~220-240 hours) to travel the ~7500 km (4600 mi) of ocean separating Port of LA and Port Canaveral. Even assuming many lengthy stops for fuel and supplies, the vessel should easily arrive in time to attempt its first East Coast fairing catch in support of SpaceX’s next launch, NET February 18th. After that, Crew Dragon’s inaugural orbital launch (DM-1) is targeted for late February, followed by Cargo Dragon’s 17th operational mission (NET March 16th) and the second-ever launch of Falcon Heavy, absolutely no earlier than March 7th.
Mr. Steven appears to have quietly departed Port of Los Angeles for Manzanillo, a port on the southwest coast of Mexico. This is likely Leg #1 of a voyage to Port Canaveral, where he can support #SpaceX's more frequent Florida launches. He'll be missed on the West Coast 🙁 pic.twitter.com/Jb5cOA2Cda
— Eric Ralph (@13ericralph31) January 29, 2019
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s Texas ranch to showcase the lifelong work that changed the world
Elon Musk is building a product gallery at his Texas ranch spanning his lifelong inventions.
Elon Musk took to X earlier today, noting “Am putting together a product gallery at my ranch in Texas.” in response to a resurfaced famous quote from JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon’s wherein he draw parallels of the Tesla CEO to legendary physicist Albert Einstein.
Dimon made the remark at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland back in January 2025, telling CNBC at the time, “SpaceX, Tesla, Neuralink, I mean, the guy is our Einstein.” The remark seemingly ended a long-time feud between the two high profile execs.
While details are thin about the exact location of Elon Musk’s Texas ranch and any pending projects that would serve as a gallery and homage to his portfolio of revolutionary product inventions spanning from 1984 to 2025, land acquisition records point to roughly a location of several thousand acres in Bastrop County, east of Austin near the Colorado River and held through an LLC called Horse Ranch LLC that’s managed by Musk’s longtime personal friend and family wealth manager Jared Birchall. Birchall also serves as the CEO of Neuralink.
Tesla’s “ecological paradise” in Giga Texas may be larger than expected
The broader Bastrop County footprint surrounding the ranch has grown significantly. Entities tied to Musk have accumulated approximately 2,000 acres in Bastrop County as of mid-2026, up from 700 acres earlier in the year, with possibly as much as 6,000 acres acquired in total across Bastrop and Travis counties based on deed records.
No completion date for the gallery has been announced and Musk has not confirmed whether it will be open to the public. As Teslarati has reported, SpaceX just completed the largest IPO in history raising $75 billion, a milestone that makes this particular moment in Musk’s career a natural inflection point for looking back at what he has built through the years.
Am putting together a product gallery at my ranch in Texas https://t.co/xQf5FRy4uz
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 15, 2026
Starting with Blastar, a simple space shooter game Musk coded at 12 years old and sold to a South African magazine for $500. From there the timeline moves through a commercial career that started with Zip2 in 1995, a city guide software company sold to Compaq for roughly $300 million in 1999. That was followed by X.com in 1999, which merged with Confinity to become PayPal, acquired by eBay in 2002 for $1.5 billion. SpaceX came in 2002, Tesla in 2003, SolarCity in 2006, the Supercharger network in 2012, Neuralink in 2016, The Boring Company in 2016, OpenAI co-founded in 2015, X acquired in 2022, xAI in 2023, Optimus in 2024, the Cybercab in 2026, and most recently SpaceXAI following the SpaceX and xAI merger. The gallery will also likely include items that blur the line between product and cultural artifact, among them The Boring Company’s Not-a-Flamethrower from 2018, Tesla Short Shorts from 2020, and Burnt Hair perfume released under X in 2022.
SpaceX’s Starlink has launched its latest residential hardware kit: the V5. Designed for reliable high-speed internet, the new terminal represents a significant leap forward in user equipment.
The next generation Starlink Kit is designed to deliver reliable, high-speed home internet. Starlink V5 has a smaller form factor and lightweight design with greater power efficiency than the Starlink V4.
With speeds up to 375+ Mbps, Starlink V5 delivers seamless connectivity… pic.twitter.com/0dorU6n0oD
— Starlink (@Starlink) July 14, 2026
The new V5 Starlink kit features a dramatically smaller and lighter form factor, measuring approximately 384 mm x 306 mm x 34 mm and weighing just 1.1 kg, which is less than half the weight of the previous V4 model, which was 2.9 kg.
This compact design makes installation easier and more versatile, whether mounted on a roof, pole, or even integrated with a pipe adapter. An integrated LED light aids setup in low-light conditions.
Power efficiency sees major gains too. The V5 draws only 35-50W, reducing energy consumption and making it ideal for off-grid or solar-powered setups. Despite its smaller size, performance remains robust. Starlink claims peak speeds of 375+ Mbps, supported by a new Wi-Fi 6 Router Mini that covers up to 2,200 square feet and connects up to 235 devices simultaneously.
The kit maintains strong signal reliability in diverse environments, from urban rooftops to remote rural areas, as demonstrated in the promo footage released by SpaceX, showing seamless operation under cloudy skies.
These improvements expand suitable applications considerably. Households can enjoy lag-free 4K streaming, smooth video conferencing, online gaming, and smart home device management without interruption. The V5’s efficiency and portability also benefit RVs, small businesses, and temporary installations in disaster-recovery zones where quick deployment is critical. Its lightweight build lowers shipping costs and simplifies user handling compared to bulkier predecessors.
Starlink’s Broader Impact on Global Internet Connectivity
Since SpaceX began launching Starlink satellites in 2019, the constellation has grown rapidly. By mid-2026, over 10,400 satellites orbit Earth, with thousands more deployed annually. This massive low-Earth-orbit network delivers broadband to approximately 160 countries and territories, reaching millions of users who previously lacked reliable internet access.
Starlink plays a vital role in bridging the digital divide. It provides essential connectivity to remote communities, maritime vessels, airlines, and regions affected by natural disasters or infrastructure gaps. By combining advanced satellite technology with iterative hardware upgrades like the V5 kit, SpaceX continues to push the boundaries of global internet access, fostering education, economic opportunity, and emergency response capabilities worldwide.
As production ramps up, the V5 promises to make high-performance internet even more accessible to users everywhere.
SpaceX is gearing up for the 13th Starship integrated flight test, which is currently scheduled for Thursday, July 16, with the launch window opening up at 6:30 PM E.T. from Starbase in South Texas.
This mission, the second with the V3 Starship and Super Heavy vehicles, builds directly on the foundation of Flight 12 while introducing ambitious new objectives, including the debut deployment of next-generation Starlink V3 satellites.
The rapid iteration between flights underscores SpaceX’s “fail fast, learn faster” philosophy, with engineers addressing specific anomalies from the previous test to push reusability and payload capabilities further.
Starship’s thirteenth flight test is preparing to launch as early as Thursday, July 16 → https://t.co/Rp7VwBzpWx pic.twitter.com/jdpFlQUEpF
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 11, 2026
Flight 12 occurred earlier in 2026 and encountered notable challenges that became catalysts for Flight 13’s improvements. Issues included booster course deviations during the flip maneuver after stage separation, reusability problems with Super Heavy’s Raptor engine relights for the boostback burn, and an engine-out event on the Starship upper stage during its propulsion phase.
These hiccups, while they did not prevent overall mission success, highlighted areas needing refinement for more consistent performance and higher safety margins in future operational flights.
Elon Musk called it Epic: The full story of SpaceX’s Starship Flight 12
In response, SpaceX implemented a comprehensive suite of both hardware and software upgrades.
For the booster, engineers developed a more robust stage separation flip sequence to maintain stable orientation and prevent off-course rotation. Hardware modifications have enhanced Raptor re-light reliability during the boostback burn, complemented by updated engine alarms and abort logic tailored for multi-engine operations. On the Starship side, propulsion system changes directly tackle the Flight 12 engine-out scenario, improving redundancy and operational resilience.
Another major focus of SpaceX for Flight 13 was the advancements in the heat shield. New tile designs and attachment mechanisms, including tests of aft flaps and skirts, aim to boost durability.
Load-sensing tiles will measure real-time stresses during atmospheric entry, while white-painted tiles simulate missing ones as imaging targets. Six of the 20 Starlink V3 satellites carried aboard will feature specialized cameras to scan and transmit heat shield imagery back to ground teams, providing critical data for future return-to-launch-site attempts.
The mission profile also includes a higher dynamic pressure ascent to stress-test the thermal protection system and increase payload potential, alongside a planned in-space Raptor engine relight demonstration.
The V3 Starlink satellites themselves mark a leap forward, equipped with laser links, deployable solar arrays, and improved antennas to expand network capacity and speeds.
The company wrote:
“For the first time, Starship will carry V3 Starlink satellites to space, which aim to greatly expand the network’s capacity and user speeds. As part of this initial test, Starship is planned to deploy 20 satellites which will extend solar arrays and antennas and will attempt to connect with ground stations in South Africa and the larger Starlink constellation via high-capacity lasers. Six of the satellites have been modified with a suite of cameras to scan Starship’s heat shield and transmit imagery down to operators to continue testing methods of analyzing Starship’s heat shield readiness for return to launch site on future missions. Several tiles on Starship have been painted white to simulate missing tiles and serve as imaging targets in the test.”
This dual-purpose flight tests both vehicle reliability and satellite tech in one integrated operation.
These iterative changes, catalyzed by Flight 12’s data, position Starship closer to rapid reusability goals essential for ambitious programs like Artemis lunar missions and global Starlink coverage.
As SpaceX continues its aggressive test cadence, Flight 13 exemplifies how targeted engineering responses to real-flight anomalies accelerate progress toward fully operational, high-cadence launches. Success here could mark another milestone in the Starship program for SpaceX.
Tesla has to fix a big problem with its old headlights, NHTSA says
NTSB findings on fatal Tesla crash tell a very different story
