space

SpaceX is bringing Dragon recovery operations to Long Beach next year

The announcement comes 10 days after Elon Musk lashed out at California officials over several new laws, including one dealing with gender identity.

Brandon Richardson

Jul 31, 2024 — 4 min read

Support teams work around the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft shortly after it landed with with NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Koichi Wakata, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina onboard in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Tampa, Florida, Saturday, March 11, 2023. Courtesy of NASA/Keegan Barber.

After six years in Florida, SpaceX is bringing its Dragon spacecraft recovery operations back to the West Coast at the Port of Long Beach.

The announcement was made 10 days after SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to X to denounce California and claim he would move the space firm’s headquarters from Hawthorne, CA to Texas.

SpaceX’s West Coast recovery operations for Falcon 9 boosters has been anchored at the Port of Long Beach since 2021. During his annual Grow Long Beach event in May, Mayor Rex Richardson announced that Musk’s space company signed an expanded five-year lease renewal that more than doubled the size of its Long Beach operations from six acres to 15 acres, including submerged land and dry land, office space and manufacturing space.

Scratch This: Providing for your pets after you die

Even if there's no will, there's probably a way.

People wave brightly colored flags while walking down a street.

Clothes? Live music? Free mom hugs? Find it all at Trans Pride Long Beach

As trans rights fell under attack in recent years, so did the need for the community to create its own pride celebration in Long Beach.

A man and a dog walk along a gravel road between trees and bushes with an oil derrick in the background.

Get to know Long Beach’s Willow Springs Park with free weekend activities

A six-week series of events that starts this Sunday will include photography and drawing outings, a talk on the park’s history and an interactive music program.

Clocked Out: Let's take a hike

Psst, that wicked heat is gone and we only have a few days left of summer. Let's enjoy them on the dusty trail.