Nebula-1

First Nebula-1A erected on a new Haiyang sea-recovery pad in March 2026 after second- and first-stage static fires in late 2025; the pad passed an integrated test mission on March 30-31, 2026. The originally targeted mid-2026 debut remains unflown as of 15 September 2026; launch trackers list the first test no earlier than December 2026 and describe the profile as suborbital, with a first-stage recovery attempt still planned.

Payload to LEO

2,000 kg

Height

30.2 m

First-Stage Diameter

3.35 m

First-Stage Engines

9 × Thunder-R

company engine page 283 kN SL each; March 2026 vehicle coverage cited ~22 t each

Reusable

Yes (first stage)

Propellant

Kerosene / liquid oxygen

Announced next steps from Deep Blue Aerospace that mention Nebula-1.

1. Sep 282026

   Deep Blue Aerospace closes B6 and B7 rounds near RMB 2 billion

   Jiangsu Deep Blue Aerospace said on September 24 it had completed two financing rounds totaling nearly 20 billion yuan. Securities Times identified the rounds as B6 and B7 and listed returning shareholders including Wuxi High-tech Zone Investment Holding Group, Zhuoyuan Capital and Zhengyue Investment, alongside Addor Capital, Oceanpine, listed Boton Technology, Hongrun Construction and Youluoka. China Securities Journal reported the same company disclosure and said proceeds will fund Nebula-1 work and deeper development of the larger Nebula-2 reusable rocket. The company did not publish an exact combined figure, a post-money valuation, or a new Nebula-1 flight date.

   www.cs.com.cn ↗egs.stcn.com ↗

2. Jun 302026

   Deep Blue Aerospace sets Nebula-1 maiden flight for June 30

   Deep Blue Aerospace scheduled the debut test flight of its reusable Nebula-1 rocket for June 30 from a sea-launch pad at Haiyang's Oriental Spaceport. The 30.2-meter vehicle, powered by nine Thunder-R engines for about 198 tons of thrust and rated for 2,000 kg to low Earth orbit, was to fly a suborbital profile and attempt a controlled vertical landing at sea, supported by the company's newly readied recovery ship. The debut booster carries grid fins but no landing legs, framing the flight as a key reusability demonstration.

   Space Launch Schedule ↗SpaceNews ↗

• 

  In Development

  Thunder-R Engine

  Reusable kerosene-liquid oxygen rocket engine in Deep Blue's Leiting (Thunder) family. Nine Thunder-R engines power the Nebula-1 first stage.

  Reusable

  Yes

  Cluster

  9 engines

• In Development

  Nebula-2

  Larger, five-meter-diameter kerosene-liquid oxygen heavy-lift rocket stepping up from Nebula-1, designed to carry more than 25,000 kg to LEO on a cluster of up-rated Thunder-RS engines with planned first-stage recovery and reuse.

  Payload to LEO

  25,000+ kg

  First-stage engines (design)

  11 × Thunder-RS

• In Development

  Thunder-RS Engine

  Up-rated, ~130-tonne-class kerosene-liquid oxygen engine in Deep Blue's Leiting (Thunder) family, using needle-valve injection and deep throttling, developed to power the Nebula-2 first stage with planned reuse.

  Demonstrated Thrust

  1,297.5 kN

• 

  Active

  Falcon 9

  SpaceX

  Partially reusable two-stage medium-lift launch vehicle. The world's most frequently launched orbital rocket.

  Payload to LEO

  22,800 kg (expendable)

  Payload to GTO

  8,300 kg (expendable)

• 

  Active

  Falcon Heavy

  SpaceX

  Heavy-lift launch vehicle consisting of a strengthened Falcon 9 core with two additional boosters.

  Payload to LEO

  63,800 kg

  Payload to GTO

  26,700 kg

• 

  Active

  Dragon

  SpaceX

  Reusable spacecraft for cargo and crew transport to the International Space Station.

  Crew Capacity

  Up to 7

  Cargo Capacity (pressurized)

  6,000 kg

• 

  In Development

  Starship

  SpaceX

  Fully reusable super-heavy-lift launch system designed for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. V3 (Block 3) variant with Raptor 3 engines is the production version.

  Payload to LEO

  100–150 t

  Height

  121 m (397 ft)