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SpaceX churning out Starship Super Heavy booster parts ahead of first stacking
SpaceX is busy churning out dozens of steel rings for Starship’s first Super Heavy booster, the assembly of which CEO Elon Musk says could be just “a few weeks” out.
Significantly more than twice the height of Starship’s main propellant tank and engine section, Super Heavy boosters will stand an incredible 70+ meters (230+ feet) tall once complete – the same height or taller than an entire two-stage Falcon 9 or Falcon Heavy rocket. Unlike Starship, Super Heavy will have no conical nose section and will be built – like Starship tanks – entirely out of simple steel rings.
Each measuring 9m (~30 ft) in diameter and 1.8m (~6 ft) tall, SpaceX will need to stack some 38 of those steel rings to complete Super Heavy’s propellant tanks, interstage, and engine section. Impressively, SpaceX is making so much progress building Super Heavy subsections that the start of the first booster assembly will likely have to wait until a facility (“high bay”) tall enough is ready to stack them.
Thanks to handy labels affixed to each ring group and the watchful eye of local resident and photographer Mary (also known as BocaChicaGal), no less than six confirmed sections of the first Super Heavy booster (SH1) have already been spotted in Boca Chica. Ranging from two to four rings tall, the first of those ring sections was spotted on September 22nd, followed by another on the 28th.
Within the first few days of October, that doubled to four, five, and six confirmed stacks, as well as several more likely candidates with labels hidden from publicly accessible viewpoints. Additionally, Musk’s recent note that the liquid oxygen tank of Super Heavy boosters will have “longitudinal stiffeners” – also known as stringers – meant that a trio of five-ring stacks with said stringers were also candidates for Super Heavy #1.
Assuming one of those three five-ring stacks is reserved for the first functional Starship nose section, SpaceX may already have 30+ Super Heavy rings – of ~38 total – awaiting the completion of high bay construction.
Roughly 80 meters (~260 ft) tall, SpaceX’s Boca Chica high bay is essentially an enclosed gantry crane that will be used to stack and outfit Super Heavy boosters – the final steps of production. SpaceX and its contractors began building the high bay in early July and Musk says that the massive building is just “a few weeks” away from completion. As of October, the structure is essentially complete, as is the wall cladding. Roughly half of the building’s roof is also complete, leaving a small amount of work left before running power, HVAC, and plumbing is all that remains.
Unsurprisingly, the SpaceX CEO also says that the high bay will eventually be outfitted with a “giant gantry crane,” though Super Heavy booster stacking will likely begin before then. In the meantime, there’s a good chance that SpaceX will start stacking Super Heavy subsections in the existing Starship mid bay, hopefully leaving just a few big stacks in the high bay to complete the first booster.
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Tesla Model S and X customization options begin to thin as their closure nears
Tesla’s Online Design Studio for both vehicles now shows the first color option to be listed as “Sold Out,” as Lunar Silver is officially no longer available for the Model S or Model X. This color is exclusive to these cars and not available on the Model S or Model X.
Tesla Model S and Model X customization options are beginning to thin for the first time as the closure of the two “sentimental” vehicles nears.
We are officially seeing the first options disappear as Tesla begins to work toward ending production of the two cars and the options that are available to those vehicles specifically.
Tesla’s Online Design Studio for both vehicles now shows the first color option to be listed as “Sold Out,” as Lunar Silver is officially no longer available for the Model S or Model X. This color is exclusive to these cars and not available on the Model S or Model X.
🚨 Tesla Model S and Model X availability is thinning, as Tesla has officially shown that the Lunar Silver color option on both vehicles is officially sold out
To be fair, Frost Blue is still available so no need to freak out pic.twitter.com/YnwsDbsFOv
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) February 25, 2026
Tesla is making way for the Optimus humanoid robot project at the Fremont Factory, where the Model S and Model X are produced. The two cars are low-volume models and do not contribute more than a few percent to Tesla’s yearly delivery figures.
With CEO Elon Musk confirming that the Model S and Model X would officially be phased out at the end of the quarter, some of the options are being thinned out.
This is an expected move considering Tesla’s plans for the two vehicles, as it will make for an easier process of transitioning that portion of the Fremont plant to cater to Optimus manufacturing. Additionally, this is likely one of the least popular colors, and Tesla is choosing to only keep around what it is seeing routine demand for.
During the Q4 Earnings Call in January, Musk confirmed the end of the Model S and Model X:
“It is time to bring the Model S and Model X programs to an end with an honorable discharge. It is time to bring the S/X programs to an end. It’s part of our overall shift to an autonomous future.”
Fremont will now build one million Optimus units per year as production is ramped.
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Tesla Cybertruck Dual Motor AWD estimated delivery slips to early fall 2026
Tesla has also added a note on the Cybertruck design page stating that the vehicle’s price will increase after February 28.
Tesla’s estimated delivery window for new Cybertruck Dual Motor All-Wheel Drive (AWD) orders in the United States has shifted to September–October 2026. This suggests that the vehicle’s sub-$60,000 variant is now effectively sold out until then.
The updated timeline was highlighted in a post on X by Tesla watcher Sawyer Merritt, who noted that the estimated delivery window had moved from June 2026 to September-October 2026, “presumably due to strong demand.”
The Dual Motor AWD currently starts at $59,990 before incentives. Tesla has also added a note on the Cybertruck design page stating that the vehicle’s price will increase after February 28.
If demand remains steady, the combination of a later delivery window and a pending price increase suggests Tesla is seeing sustained interest in the newly-introduced Cybertruck configuration. This was highlighted by Elon Musk on X, when he noted that the Cybertruck Dual Motor AWD’s introductory price will only be available for a limited time.
When the Cybertruck was first unveiled in November 2019, Tesla listed the Dual Motor AWD variant at $49,990. Adjusted for inflation, that figure equates to roughly $63,000 in 2026 dollars, based on cumulative U.S. inflation since 2019.
That context makes a potential post-February price in the $64,000 to $65,000 range less surprising, especially as material, labor, and manufacturing costs have shifted significantly over the past several years.
While Tesla has not announced a specific new MSRP, the updated delivery timeline and pricing note together suggest that the Cybertruck Dual Motor AWD could very well be the variant that takes the all-electric full-sized pickup truck to more widespread adoption.
Elon Musk
SpaceX targets 150Mbps per user for upgraded Starlink Direct-to-Cell
If achieved, the 150Mbps goal would represent a significant jump from the current performance of Starlink Direct-to-Cell.
SpaceX is targeting peak download speeds of 150Mbps per user for its next-generation Direct-to-Cell Starlink service. The update was shared by SpaceX Spectrum & Regulatory Affairs Lead Udrivolf Pica during the International Telecommunication Union’s Space Connect conference.
“We are aiming at peak speeds of 150Mbps per user,” Pica said during the conference. “So something incredible if you think about the link budgets from space to the mobile phone.”
If achieved, the 150Mbps goal would represent a significant jump from the current performance of Starlink Direct-to-Cell.
Today, SpaceX’s cellular Starlink service, offered in partnership with T-Mobile under the T-Satellite brand, provides speeds of roughly 4Mbps per user. The service is designed primarily for texts, low-resolution video calls, and select apps in locations that traditionally have no cellular service.
By comparison, Ookla data shows median 5G download speeds of approximately 309Mbps for T-Mobile and 172Mbps for AT&T in the United States, as noted in a PCMag report. While 150Mbps would still trail the fastest terrestrial 5G networks, it would place satellite-to-phone broadband much closer to conventional carrier performance, even in remote areas.
Pica indicated that the upgraded system would support “video, voice, and data services, clearly,” moving beyond emergency connectivity and basic messaging use cases.
To reach that target, SpaceX plans to upgrade its existing Starlink Direct-to-Cell satellites and add significant new capacity. The company recently acquired access to radio spectrum from EchoStar, which Pica described as key to expanding throughput.Â
“More spectrum means a bigger pipeline, and this means that we can expand what we can do with partners. We can expand the quality of service. And again, we can do cellular broadband basically, cellular broadband use cases, like AI or daily connectivity needs,” he stated.
SpaceX has also requested regulatory approval to deploy 15,000 additional Direct-to-Cell satellites, beyond the roughly 650 currently supporting the system. The upgraded architecture is expected to begin rolling out in late 2027.
Tesla Model S and X customization options begin to thin as their closure nears
Tesla Cybertruck Dual Motor AWD estimated delivery slips to early fall 2026
