SPCX · Nasdaq-listed

121 metres, taken apart piece by piece

Loading the vehicle 0%
Starlink is a business segment of SPCX. It is not a separately listed security, and no spin-off filing exists.

Seven parts

01 Avionics & GNC

The hardware that lets the vehicle know where it is and how it is pointed, and correct its own path. It sits in the electronics bay inside the nose.

The nose splits open 78° like a fairing, and the three gimbal rings and the triple-redundant flight computers lift out in sequence.

Companies in this domain

  • Honeywell (HON) — Industrial group building inertial navigation units and flight-control computers
  • Moog (MOG-A) — Builds precision actuators for aerospace
  • Garmin (GRMN) — Long-standing maker of GPS receivers and navigation software
  • Teledyne (TDY) — Supplies sensors and instrumentation built for space environments
  • Hanwha Systems (272210) — Defense affiliate developing satellite payloads and avionics
  • Intellian Tech (189300) — Builds satellite communication antennas

02 Payload Bay

The cargo bay that places Starlink satellites in orbit. The door opens, the dispenser pushes satellites out one at a time, and each unfolds its solar array in space.

The bay door swings 112° open and satellites are pushed sideways out of the slot one at a time — PEZ-dispenser style — then unfold their solar arrays as they drift away. Four, in sequence.

Companies in this domain

  • Lockheed Martin (LMT) — Defense group building satellite buses and large space structures
  • Northrop Grumman (NOC) — Works on satellites, space structures and on-orbit servicing
  • AST SpaceMobile (ASTS) — Aims to connect ordinary phones directly via satellite
  • Iridium (IRDM) — Operates a low-Earth-orbit satellite communications network
  • Planet Labs (PL) — Images the Earth daily with a fleet of small satellites
  • Spire Global (SPIR) — Collects weather, maritime and aviation data from satellites
  • Boeing (BA) — Aerospace group with both launch-vehicle and satellite businesses
  • Satrec Initiative (099320) — Designs and builds small Earth-observation satellites
  • Contec (451760) — Operates ground-station networks and satellite data reception

03 Heat Shield & Flaps

Tiles that survive re-entry heating, and flaps that lay the vehicle flat to bleed off speed. Only the windward face is tiled.

The four flaps deflect, then separate along their span axis in sequence. The windward tiles stay attached.

Companies in this domain

  • Howmet Aerospace (HWM) — Materials company making precision alloy parts for high temperature
  • ATI Inc. (ATI) — Produces titanium and heat-resistant specialty alloys
  • Carpenter Technology (CRS) — Specialty steel and alloy maker for aerospace
  • Hexcel (HXL) — Carbon-fibre composite materials maker
  • Materion (MTRN) — Supplies beryllium and other high-performance precision materials
  • HVM (295310) — Produces specialty alloy materials
  • Korea Aerospace Ind. (047810) — Korean aerospace firm building launch-vehicle and aircraft structures

04 Booster & Grid Fins

The first stage, and the lattice fins that steer it down to the recovery point. Reusability is decided here.

The four lattice pads that stand out horizontally from the hull separate radially in sequence. The four aft strakes are visible too.

Companies in this domain

  • TransDigm (TDG) — Components group making aircraft actuators and mechanical parts
  • Moog (MOG-A) — Specialist in the actuators that move control surfaces like grid fins
  • Howmet Aerospace (HWM) — Materials company making precision forged structural parts
  • Ducommun (DCO) — Builds aerospace structures and electronic assemblies
  • Park Aerospace (PKE) — Makes composite parts for aerospace
  • Hanwha Aerospace (012450) — Korea’s main builder of launch-vehicle engines and structures

05 Stainless Steel Body

A stainless-steel airframe instead of carbon fibre — cheaper, keeps more strength when hot, and the cryogenic propellant tanks are the structure itself.

The booster hull opens into a cutaway: the oxidiser and fuel tanks part along the axis and the propellant levels slosh very slowly.

Companies in this domain

  • Linde (LIN) — Supplies industrial gases used in welding and cryogenics
  • Carpenter Technology (CRS) — Stainless and specialty steel maker
  • Steel Dynamics (STLD) — US electric-arc-furnace steelmaker
  • Nucor (NUE) — Largest US electric-arc-furnace steelmaker
  • Poongsan (103140) — Produces copper and specialty alloy materials
  • AS Tech (067390) — Builds aircraft fuselage structures
  • Kencoa Aerospace (274090) — Machines aluminium and specialty materials for aerospace

06 Raptor Engines

A methane/LOX staged-combustion engine. Thirty-three sit on the booster — 13 inner plus 20 outer — and only the centre three gimbal to steer.

All 33 light up, the vehicle shudders and climbs. The camera drops under the cluster, starts in close-up and pulls back with the ascent.

Companies in this domain

  • GE Aerospace (GE) — Builds turbine engines for aviation
  • Rocket Lab (RKLB) — Develops and flies its own launch vehicles and rocket engines
  • Eaton (ETN) — Supplies hydraulic and electrical control components
  • RTX (RTX) — Defense group with aero-engine and propulsion systems
  • Hanwha Aerospace (012450) — Develops and produces liquid rocket engines
  • Doosan Enerbility (034020) — Power-plant firm with large forging and casting facilities

07 Flight Software

Control software that re-decides across dozens of engines hundreds of times a second, plus the tools used to design and verify it. Not a physical part — it cuts across the whole vehicle.

The whole stack comes apart — the ship separates and rises off the booster while all four flaps, four grid fins and 33 Raptors pull away, data traces sweeping the full 121 m. Software is not a part; it cuts across everything.

Companies in this domain

  • Microsoft (MSFT) — Software group supplying cloud and developer tooling
  • NVIDIA (NVDA) — Accelerated computing chips used in simulation and autonomy
  • Cadence (CDNS) — Electronic and system design-verification software
  • Palantir (PLTR) — Operational data integration and analysis platform
  • Woojoo Electro (065680) — Makes electronic connectors and components

These companies work in the same technology domain. This is not a claim that they supply SpaceX — SpaceX does not publish its supplier list.

Space & Defense on the theme quadrant

as of 2026-07-30 · RSI(14)

X = RSI(14) position, Y = 1-month momentum. The bright trail is the space & defense basket — big dot is today, smaller dots go back 1W → 1M → 6M → 1Y. A momentum reference, not a recommendation.

Fear deepeningRebound from fearLeadingWeakeningSpace & Defense · 49.1
Open the full theme quadrant →

For information only. Not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Grades are produced by our own model and are not investment advice.

3D assets, all CC BY 4.0 via Sketchfab, compressed and re-rendered (modified) by Owl Labs: “SpaceX Starship Ship S25 & Booster 9” by clarence365; “Starlink Spacex Satellite” by Malacodart; “SpaceX Starship Raptor 3 engine” by VoitAa.

Business informationDisclaimer