Stoke Space’s Latest Milestone Demands Attention
▼ Summary
– Stoke Space raised $510 million in Series D funding, doubling its total capital to $990 million since its 2020 founding.
– The funding will support completing development of the fully reusable Nova rocket and its initial flight demonstrations.
– The company aims for a 2026 launch of Nova, which features a regeneratively cooled heat shield on its second stage.
– Nova’s payload capacity is 3 metric tons to low-Earth orbit when fully reusable and up to 7 tons in expendable mode.
– Stoke’s fundraising and timeline parallels Relativity Space, which also raised $500 million in 2020 but faced delays and pivoted to a new rocket design.
Stoke Space has successfully secured a $510 million Series D funding round, dramatically boosting its total capital to nearly one billion dollars. This substantial financial backing provides the company with the necessary resources to finalize development of its innovative Nova rocket and move forward with initial flight demonstrations. According to Andy Lapsa, the firm’s co-founder and CEO, this investment ensures they have the operational runway needed to achieve these critical milestones.
The company is targeting a 2026 launch for its medium-lift Nova vehicle, which features a groundbreaking design focused on full reusability. The entire rocket, including the payload fairing, is engineered for reuse, supported by a regeneratively cooled heat shield on the second stage. In its fully reusable configuration, Nova is projected to deliver up to 3 metric tons to low-Earth orbit, a figure that increases to 7 tons when the rocket is used in an expendable mode.
This recent funding achievement draws interesting comparisons to another ambitious launch provider, Relativity Space. Founded in 2016, Relativity initially gained attention for its plan to construct rockets almost entirely through 3D printing. In late 2020, the company announced its own $500 million Series D round. At that stage, Relativity employed around 230 people and was preparing for a launch the following year. Stoke Space currently has a workforce of approximately 280 and is similarly aiming for a launch in the near future.
However, Relativity’s journey encountered significant delays. Its Terran 1 rocket did not make its inaugural flight until 2023, two years behind the original schedule, and has not flown since. The company faced severe financial difficulties last year, narrowly avoiding bankruptcy after receiving a crucial cash injection from former Google executive Eric Schmidt. Relativity has since shifted its strategy, moving away from its pioneering additive manufacturing approach to concentrate on developing the more conventional Terran R launch vehicle.
(Source: Ars Technica)
