Port Canaveral, east of Orlando, was a hub of activity this past week as SpaceX officials attempted to rescue a wayward booster that had fallen into the ocean just off Florida’s space coast. A crowd of onlookers showed up day after day to glean insights into the secretive company’s recovery efforts. Some people even booked helicopter tours in hopes of catching a glimpse of the booster.

The booster in question, dubbed B1050 by SpaceX, made its one and only flight on December 5, a mission to deposit a Dragon cargo capsule into space. It was then supposed to return to land in what would have been the company’s fourth land landing this year. After completing its primary mission objective, the booster conducted a series of planned aerial maneuvers required to return to solid ground.

At first its descent appeared to be on track; it wasn’t until its landing burn was about to begin that it became visibly obvious that something wasn’t quite right about its trajectory. Instead of sticking the landing, B1050 went for an unscheduled swim in the Atlantic Ocean. The booster’s nautical visit was a relief to many, as a land touchdown would likely have been accompanied by an explosion. SpaceX later said that one of its grid fins, which help stabilize the vehicle as it plummets through the atmosphere, was at fault.

The once-shiny black-and-white booster, now scorched from its trip through the atmosphere, floated for two days like a giant buoy on top of the water before crews finally ventured out to retrieve it. With its landing legs splayed out, B1050 bobbed like a piece of driftwood while two SpaceX recovery ships kept it company.

On Dec. 7, the booster was towed into port and docked next to one of the company’s drone ships, named Of Course I Still Love You. SpaceX’s recovery crew still had to hoist the booster onto the deck and remove its deployed landing legs. (A much more difficult task when the booster is floating in the ocean versus standing on the deck of a ship). It took another four days for crews to remove the landing legs and the grid fins to properly assess the damage sustained by the booster.

For the most part, B1050 looked in pretty good shape considering the many days it had floated in corrosive, salty seawater. The interstage—a black portion that connects the rocket’s two stages—was badly damaged, but overall the booster looked to be in decent shape. After losing its legs, B1050 sat like a lonely piece of scrap metal on a dock for several days before finally being hauled into one of the company’s facilities, presumably to be dismantled.