Nova Pathfinder
Overview
Fully reusable two-stage medium-lift launch vehicle (Stoke's first orbital configuration) with a reusable fairing and a downmass-capable upper stage designed to prove full-reuse technologies in flight while carrying customer payloads.
Upper-stage flight testing was completed in 2023, the Zenith first-stage engine hotfired in 2024, and in early June 2026 Stoke completed proto-qualification of the first stage at Moses Lake (46 structural verification tests). By mid-August 2026 Stoke had completed and shipped Pathfinder's flight-configuration first-stage engines and conducted second-stage fit checks. First orbital flight slipped from late 2026 to early 2027 and will carry an AstroForge asteroid-prospecting spacecraft; Stoke plans multiple Pathfinder flights in 2027 and 2028. Next hardware steps are second-stage acceptance and static hot-fire at Moses Lake, then pad wet-dress and static fire at SLC-14.