

SpaceX
SpaceX continues rocket fleet shuffle as Falcon 9 arrives for next CA launch
Strengthening the odds that SpaceX’s first Block 5 rocket will soon become the first Falcon 9 to launch three times, a SpaceX booster arrived at Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) on 10/25 ahead of Spaceflight Industry’s SSO-A rideshare mission, scheduled for launch no earlier than November 19th.
Notably, a flurry of spottings posted on social media offers a unique glimpse into the major logistical infrastructure SpaceX has built up over years of transporting massive Falcon rockets across the continental US.
- Falcon 9 B1048 landed at LZ-4 after its second launch and is now being refurbished on the opposite coast. (SpaceX)
- It’s currently unclear whether B1046 or B1048 will become the first SpaceX rocket to fly three times. (Tom Cross)
Barely 24 hours after SpaceX successfully launched SAOCOM 1A, a Falcon 9 upper stage was seen traveling north just a few miles away from Vandenberg, wasting no time at all to fill the momentarily empty SLC-4 integration hangar. Two weeks after the second stage arrived, a Falcon 9 booster was spotted heading through Santa Maria towards VAFB, approximately on schedule for SSO-A’s targeted Nov 19 launch date.
Traveling from Hawthorne, CA, the identity of this particular booster is especially ambiguous. Due to a lack of on-base space at SpaceX’s Vandenberg facilities, there simply isn’t enough room for multiple boosters to be worked on in the SLC-4 hangar, meaning that the arrival of one rocket necessitates the departure of another. After landing for the first time at SpaceX’s West Coast LZ-4, Falcon 9 B1048 seems to have remained at the launch pad (assuming it didn’t manage to depart without being spotted). As such, the arrival of a booster on Oct 25 is firm evidence that B1048 is either not going to launch SSO-A or was refurbished at SpaceX’s Hawthorne factory a few hundred miles south of VAFB.
Shotwell: Falcon 9 first stages come back in much better shape than anticipated. Have refurbishment time down to four weeks; goal is still a one-day turnaround next year. #WSBW
— Jeff Foust (@jeff_foust) September 11, 2018
Neither outcome would be shocking: to be ready in time to launch SSO-A, B1048 would have had barely five weeks to go from landing at LZ-4 after its second flight to being ready for the rocket’s third flight. According to COO and President Gwynne Shotwell, Falcon 9 Block 5 boosters have apparently lowered the amount of time needed for post-launch refurbishment to four weeks – presumably the minimum value for the time being. On the opposite coast, the first Falcon 9 Block 5 booster to be built and launched – B1046 – completed its second successful mission on August 7, leaving a comparatively luxurious three months for refurbishment and flight readiness review.
Whether B1046 or B1048 rolls out of SpaceX’s Vandenberg hangar next month, the fact that a Falcon 9 booster was deemed ready for its third launch at all will be a huge achievement for the company and its ultimate goal of realizing aircraft-like reusability for orbital-class rockets.
SpaceX’s Vandenberg launch complex (SLC-4) and Falcon 9 B1048.2, October 6. (Eric Ralph)
It’s raining rockets!
Including the Falcon 9 booster that arrived at Vandenberg late last week, the sheer number of SpaceX rockets photographed mid-transport in the last week alone is – from a public perspective – quite possibly a record. The same night as that mystery booster arrived at SpaceX’s West Coast launch site, SpaceX announced that it had completed a static fire of Falcon 9 B1051 – assigned to Crew Dragon’s uncrewed launch debut – in McGregor, Texas. On October 28, a SpaceX fan observed a separate Falcon 9 booster heading east through Arizona, either a new booster being shipped from Hawthorne to Texas or B1048 on its way to Texas or Florida for refurbishment and launch #3.
Finally, yet another Falcon 9 was spotted eastbound a few miles east of SpaceX’s McGregor rocket test facilities on October 30. While most likely the same booster spotted in Arizona on the 28th, the restless pace of SpaceX’s cross-country hardware transport almost defies the tracking abilities of those watching from the outside.
For prompt updates, on-the-ground perspectives, and unique glimpses of SpaceX’s rocket recovery fleet check out our brand new LaunchPad and LandingZone newsletters!
News
Starlink makes a difference in Philippine province ravaged by typhoon
The Severe Tropical Storm battered the province, leaving communications networks in the area in shambles.

The Philippines’ Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is using Starlink to provide connectivity in the municipality of Masbate, which was affected by Severe Tropical Storm Opong (international name Bualoi).
The Severe Tropical Storm battered the province, leaving communications networks in the area in shambles.
Starlink units enhance connectivity
DICT Secretary Henry Aguda visited the province to assess internet and communications infrastructure and deliver 10 additional Starlink satellite units, according to the Philippine News Agency. The is move aimed at strengthening emergency response and restore digital access to the area.
Aguda met with Masbate Governor Richard Kho during his visit and joined telecommunications representatives in inspecting provincial offices, free charging stations, and Wi-Fi connectivity sites for residents.
According to DICT officer-in-charge Rachel Ann Grabador, three Starlink units, 10 routers, and a 2kW solar-powered station have already been deployed in the province following the typhoon. The units have been installed at key facilities such as Masbate Airport’s communications tower and the Masbate Provincial Hospital’s administrative office.
Game-changing technology
Thanks to its global coverage and its capability to provide high-speed internet connectivity even in remote areas, Starlink has become the best communications solution that can be deployed in the aftermath of natural disasters. Its low-cost kits, which are capable of of providing fast internet speeds, are also portable, making them easy to deploy in areas that are damaged by natural disasters.
As noted in a Space.com report, there are currently 8,475 Starlink satellites in orbit, of which 8,460 are working, as of September 25, 2025. Initially, SpaceX had filed documents with International regulators to place about 4,000 Starlink satellites in Low Earth Orbit. Over time, however, the number of planned Starlink satellites has grown, with SpaceX aiming to launch as many as 42,000 Starlink satellites to fully connect the globe.
Elon Musk
SpaceX shares targets and tentative launch date for Starship Flight 11
As with all SpaceX tests, the estimated timeline for Starship Flight 11 remains subject to change based on conditions and readiness.

SpaceX is targeting Monday, October 13, for the eleventh test flight of its Starship launch system. The launch window is expected to open at 6:15 p.m. CT.
Similar to past Starship missions, a live webcast will begin about 30 minutes before launch on SpaceX’s website, X account, and X TV app. As with all SpaceX tests, the estimated timeline for Starship Flight 11 remains subject to change based on conditions and readiness.
Super Heavy booster landing test
The upcoming mission will build on the data gathered from Starship’s tenth test flight, focusing on booster performance and upper-stage capabilities. The Super Heavy booster, previously flown on Flight 8, will launch with 24 flight-proven Raptor engines, according to SpaceX in a blog post on its official website. Its primary objective is to validate a new landing burn engine configuration designed for the next generation of Super Heavy.
Instead of returning to Starbase, the Super Heavy booster will follow a trajectory toward the Gulf of America. During descent, it will ignite 13 engines before transitioning to a five-engine divert phase and then completing the landing burn with three central engines, entering a full hover while still above the ocean surface, followed by shutdown and dropping into the Gulf of America.
Starship upper-stage experiments
The Starship upper stage for Flight 11 will carry out a series of in-space demonstrations, including the deployment of eight Starlink simulators that are comparable in size to next-generation Starlink satellites. These payloads will reenter and burn up during descent. A planned Raptor engine relight in orbit will also provide valuable test data.
To evaluate the upper stage’s resilience during reentry, SpaceX engineers have intentionally removed heat shield tiles from select areas to stress-test Starship’s thermal protection system. The vehicle will attempt new maneuvers during descent, including a banking profile and subsonic guidance algorithms intended to simulate future return-to-launch-site missions. The upper stage will ultimately target a splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
SpaceX has already posted a link to the livestream for Starship Flight 11:
News
Astra CEO shades SpaceX over employee workload and Starbase
Elon Musk once stated that no one ever changed the world working just 40 hours a week.

Elon Musk once stated that no one ever changed the world working just 40 hours a week. This was something that is openly known among his companies. They have the potential to change the world, but they require a lot of hours.
SpaceX’s working environment was recently criticized by Chris Kemp, the chief executive officer of Astra. During some remarks at the Berkeley Space Symposium 2025 earlier this month, Kemp shared some sharp remarks about the Elon Musk-led private space enterprise.
SpaceX working conditions and Starbase
As noted in a report from Ars Technica, Kemp discussed a variety of topics during his talk. These included Astra’s successes and failures, as well as his thoughts on other players in the spaceflight industry. To be fair to Kemp, he practically shaded every major rival, calling Firefly’s engine “garbage,” dubbing Blue Origin as slow, and stating that Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket is “too small.”
SpaceX also received some colorful words from the Astra CEO. According to Kemp, SpaceX is leading the way in the spaceflight industry and Elon Musk is admirable in the way that he is willing to fail in order to move quickly. He did, however, highlight that Astra offers a significantly better working environment than SpaceX.
“It’s more fun than SpaceX, because we’re not on the border of Mexico where they’ll chop your head off if you accidentally take a left turn. And you don’t have to live in a trailer. And we don’t make you work six and a half days a week, 12 hours a day. It’s appreciated if you do, but not required,” Kemp said.
Elon Musk’s demands
It is known that Elon Musk demands quite a lot from his employees. However, it is also known that Musk-led companies move very fast and, in more ways than one, they have accomplished world-changing feats. Tesla, for example, has practically ushered in the era of the modern electric vehicle, and SpaceX has made space attainable through its reusable rockets. With this in mind, employees at Musk’s companies, and this of course includes SpaceX, are likely proud of their long work hours.
No one could probably go to Mars in this lifetime with a team that really works just 40 hours a week, after all.
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