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SpaceX’s Florida Starship shown off in aerial footage as Texas prototype grows rapidly
Local amateur photographer and spaceflight fan Michael Tapes has graciously shared a new aerial view of SpaceX’s Florida Starship facility, where dozens of workers can be seen buzzing around what is hoped to become the first orbital-class prototype of the massive spaceship and upper stage.
Tapes’ aerial footage offers a unique look at the layout of SpaceX’s Florida site as of July 9th, illustrating just how active and expansive it is. Some workers can be seen building something (perhaps preparing a new worksite) under a large, white tent, while another group surveys two large Starship segments and a third works to prepare new stainless steel ring sections. Of note, those two large Starship segments appear to be bereft of any obvious activity, perhaps a consequence of a fire that caused about $100,000 in damage the day prior (July 8th).
In fact, the shipping container that took what looks like the entirety of fire-related damage is visible on the west side of the SpaceX facility’s main hangar. Workers could be seen heading inside the extremely scorched container, likely removing debris, cleaning up the site of the incident, and preparing to scrap the damaged container itself.
Thankfully, nobody was injured by the fire and ~$100K of damage is certainly an inconvenience but is definitely nothing more for a multibillion-dollar company like SpaceX. Given that dozens of vehicles are visible in the parking lot, it’s safe to say that tons of work is ongoing under the roofs of the site’s many covered buildings, potentially designing Starship/Super Heavy, working on the rocket’s first orbital-class thrust structures, building new steel ring segments, and much more. With any luck, work on orbital Starship assembly and integration has already resumed following the small July 8th fire.
Star(ship) Wars
Speaking of that work, prior to the last week or so of progress on SpaceX South Texas’ own orbital Starship prototype, both Florida and Texas appeared to be more or less tied with two large Starship segments each and various other 9m-diameter subsections spread around their respective facilities. Impressively, Boca Chica has been marked by a flurry of recent work as multiple in-process steel rings were stacked on top of the Texas Starship’s propulsion and tankage section.
In just the last two weeks of June, workers thus pushed through the brutal South Texas heat and humidity to stack three new sections of fuselage, literally doubling the height of Boca Chica’s (hopefully) orbital-class Starship prototype in a dozen or so days. The ship’s conical nose section continues to be polished, while some sort of additional work is likely going on inside, away from public view. It’s hard to get a good overhead view but it’s safe to assume that – in the large barrel sections both in Florida and Texas – technicians are working to install (or at least prepare for) stainless steel tank domes, one of the last major finishing touches for spacecraft’s tank sections.
A huge amount of work remains for both sites but the visible progress as new ship segments are stacked and welded together is undeniably cathartic and satisfying. Working 10-12 hour shifts exposed to the Texas and Florida summer sun, heat, and wildlife is in no uncertain terms bound to be a hellish experience, but at least the hard work is so obviously producing results.
The most exciting kind of grass-watching
Back in Florida, several additional Starship barrel sections are in various stages of work, at least two of which appear to be nearly ready for stacking atop the propellant tank section already being assembled. Meanwhile, propellant tank domes were spotted in different stages of fabrication inside the Florida facility’s main hangar-cum-production-line, awaiting their turn to leave the building and prepare for installation on Starship East.
All said and done, once those visible segments are installed, Starship East will (at least by appearances) be neck and neck with its Texas sibling once more. In reality, there is likely no actual race between the two sites and they are reportedly sharing any critical discoveries and lessons-learned. Nevertheless, humans are notoriously competitive and one can only begin to imagine the (hopefully friendly) rivalry forming between the geographically distinct teams.
At the same time, SpaceX’s Florida team has several home-field advantages, so to speak, owing to their proximity to the several hundred SpaceXers working at the company’s Florida launch facilities and recovery fleet. Additionally, Florida’s Starship facility is just a few dozen miles away from SpaceX’s Kennedy Space Center Pad 39A, the most likely site of Starship’s (and Super Heavy’s) first suborbital and orbital launch attempts.
At the end of the day, a little friendly internal competition and – more so – a literal Starship A/B test are bound to be a huge benefit for SpaceX’s next-gen launch vehicle program, significantly increasing the speed at which the company can make mistakes, solve problems, and get Starship ready for orbit.
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Tesla Full Self-Driving shows stunning maneuver in Europe to silence skeptics
In a striking demonstration of autonomous driving prowess, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system recently showcased its capabilities on the narrow rural roads of the Netherlands. Captured in two in-car videos, the system encountered scenarios that would challenge even the most experienced human drivers.
Tesla Full Self-Driving, fresh on the heels of its approval for operation on European roads for the first time, showed off a stunning maneuver that will certainly silence any skeptics on the continent.
Fresh off its approval in the Netherlands, Full Self-Driving is working toward a significant expansion into more parts of Europe.
In a striking demonstration of autonomous driving prowess, Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) system recently showcased its capabilities on the narrow rural roads of the Netherlands. Captured in two in-car videos, the system encountered scenarios that would challenge even the most experienced human drivers.
In the first clip, a wide tractor occupied more than half the lane on a tight two-way road. Rather than braking abruptly or forcing a collision risk, FSD smoothly edged the vehicle onto the adjacent bike path—using the extra space with precision—before seamlessly returning to the lane once clear.
The second clip was equally demanding: while overtaking a group of cyclists, an oncoming car approached at speed.
FSD maintained a safe, minimal buffer to the cyclists while timing the pass perfectly, avoiding any swerve or hesitation that could unsettle passengers or other road users.
People wonder if FSD is safe on narrow European roads. Well have a look what it did when a tractor took up more than half of the road or when overtaking bicycles with fast oncoming traffic. pic.twitter.com/z37Csa09sP
— Chanan Bos (@ChananBos) April 14, 2026
This maneuver highlights FSD’s advanced spatial reasoning and predictive planning. On roads often under three meters wide, with no room for error, the system calculated available clearance in real time, incorporated shoulder and path geometry, and executed a controlled deviation without compromising safety.
It treated the bike path as a legitimate extension of navigable space, something many drivers might hesitate to do, while respecting Dutch road norms and cyclist priority.
Such feats align closely with a growing library of impressive FSD maneuvers documented on camera worldwide.
In urban Amsterdam, for instance, FSD has navigated the world’s densest cyclist environments, weaving through hundreds of unpredictable bike movements on canal-side streets with tram tracks and pedestrians.
One uncut drive showed it yielding smoothly at crossings, overtaking where needed, and even handling a near-perfect auto-park in a tight residential spot, demonstrating the same low-speed precision seen in the rural clips.
Teslas using FSD have tackled turbo roundabouts in the Netherlands, complex multi-lane circles notorious for geometry challenges, merging confidently while yielding to traffic. Similar clips depict smooth handling of construction zones, emergency vehicle pull-overs, and gated parking barriers, where the car stops precisely, waits for clearance, and proceeds without driver input.
Collectively, these examples illustrate FSD’s evolution toward handling the unpredictable.
The rural Netherlands maneuvers aren’t isolated. Instead, they reflect a pattern of spatial awareness, cyclist deference, and traffic anticipation seen from city streets to highways.
As FSD continues refining through real-world data, videos like this one are certainly building a compelling case for its readiness on Europe’s varied roads.
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Tesla utilizes its ‘Rave Cave’ for new awesome safety feature
Part of the massive interior overhaul of both the Model 3 “Highland” and Model Y “Juniper” was the addition of interior accent lighting to help bring out the mood of the vehicle, increase the customization of the interior, and to create a unique listening experience.
Tesla is utilizing its ‘Rave Cave’ for an awesome new safety feature that will arrive with the upcoming Spring Update for 2026.
Part of the massive interior overhaul of both the Model 3 “Highland” and Model Y “Juniper” was the addition of interior accent lighting to help bring out the mood of the vehicle, increase the customization of the interior, and to create a unique listening experience.
Tesla added a Sync Lights feature that will strobe the accent strips with the beat of the music.
It is one of the most unique and one of the coolest non-functional features of a Tesla, as it does not improve the driving of the vehicle, but makes it a cool and personal addition to the interior.
However, Tesla is going to take it one step further, as the Rave Cave lights will now be used for blind spot recognition. This feature will be added as the Spring 2026 Update starts to roll out.
A lot of CRAZY new features coming with Tesla’s 2026 Spring Update, including a new FSD app!
– Self-Driving App (AI4 hardware): New app in App Launcher > Self-Driving for one-tap FSD subscriptions, activation guides, and ongoing stats.
– “Hey Grok”: Voice-activated Grok with… https://t.co/ljeYPlq9Qt— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) April 13, 2026
Tesla writes:
“Accent lights now turn red when an object is in your blind spot and your turn signal is engaged, or when an approaching object is detected while parked.”
This neat new safety feature will now increase the likelihood of a driver, who is operating their Tesla manually, of seeing the blind spot warnings that are currently available on the A pillar and on the center touchscreen.
These new alerts will now warn drivers of cross traffic as they back out of a parking space with little to no visibility of what is coming. It is a great new addition that will only increase the safety of the vehicles, while also utilizing something that is already installed in these specific Model 3 and Model Y units.
The Model 3 and Model Y were the central focus of the Spring 2026 Update, especially considering the fact that the Model S and Model X are basically gone, with only a few hundred units left. Additionally, Tesla included new Immersive Sound and Car Visualization for the Model 3 and Model Y specifically in this new update.
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Tesla parked 50+ Cybercabs outside its Texas Factory with some crash tested
Dozens of Tesla Cybercabs have been spotted at Giga Texas crash testing facility ahead of launch.
Drone footage captured by longtime Giga Texas observer Joe Tegtmeyer shows over 50 units of Tesla Cybercab at the Austin factory campus, including several units clustered by Tesla’s on-site crash testing facility.
The outbound lot at Gigafactory Texas sits just outside the factory exit and serves as the primary staging area where finished vehicles are held before being loaded onto transport carriers or dispatched for validation testing. On any given day, the lot holds a mix of Model Y and Cybertruck units alongside the growing Tesla Cybercab fleet, as can be seen in the drone footage captured by Joe Tegtmeyer.
Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas on April 13, 2026 [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)
Tesla Cybercab fleet spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)
Tesla Cybercab crash test units spotted at Gigafactory Texas [Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer)
Tesla Full Self-Driving shows stunning maneuver in Europe to silence skeptics
Tesla utilizes its ‘Rave Cave’ for new awesome safety feature
