Stoke SpaceIn Development
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.
Latest update Sep 9, 2026
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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.
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Announced next steps from Stoke Space that mention Nova Pathfinder.
Early 2027
After the September 8, 2026 Series E announcement, Stoke recast the first orbital vehicle as Nova Pathfinder and slipped first flight from late 2026 to early 2027. CEO Andy Lapsa said the second stage will ship to Moses Lake shortly for structural acceptance and a static hot-fire, after which the booster goes to Cape Canaveral for pad wet-dress and static fire at SLC-14 before the stages are stacked. The inaugural Pathfinder mission will carry an AstroForge asteroid-prospecting spacecraft; Stoke has also booked Celestis 'Infinite Flight' and says the Pathfinder manifest is fully booked for the next couple of years. Multiple Pathfinder flights are planned through 2027 and 2028.
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Stoke Space said on September 8, 2026 it completed an initial close of a billion-dollar Series E co-led by Point72 Ventures and Spark Capital, bringing total capital raised to $2.3 billion. Reuters reported the round values the company at roughly $10 billion. The same day Stoke unveiled Nova Block 2, a larger fully reusable rocket with 14 Zenith engines and a 5-meter fairing targeting 15 metric tons to low Earth orbit in 2029, while Nova Pathfinder's first orbital flight slipped to early 2027.
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