Stoke Space
Scaling Fully Reusable Launch Toward First Flight
The product
Stoke is developing Nova, a family of fully and rapidly reusable launch vehicles. Nova Pathfinder is the initial orbital configuration, while the larger Nova Block 2 is designed to deliver 15 metric tons to low Earth orbit in a five-meter fairing.
The thesis
Reusing both stages could lower cost, increase launch cadence, and add capabilities such as orbital return and downmass that expendable upper stages cannot routinely provide. Stoke is targeting a launch-capacity gap spanning commercial, civil, and national-security missions.
How it runs
Stoke is an integrated launch-vehicle developer, manufacturer, and prospective operator building its own reusable vehicles, engines, production capacity, and launch infrastructure. It plans to fly customer payloads on Pathfinder while using those missions to validate the architecture, then scale the design into the higher-capacity Block 2 family.
How it earns
The commercial model is contracted launch and space-transport services for government and commercial payload customers. Government programs also provide paid development and mission-assurance work, including a $5 million initial task order under the Space Force NSSL Lane 1 IDIQ; venture financing currently funds vehicle development and capacity expansion ahead of operational cadence.
Why it wins
Stoke is pursuing full and rapid reuse of both rocket stages rather than discarding the upper stage. A reusable upper stage is intended to combine high-frequency launch with in-space mobility and return-to-Earth capability, and the common roadmap lets Pathfinder retire technical risk before Block 2 scales capacity.
Evidence ledger
- website · 2026-04-27
Stoke Space identifies as a reindustrialization company.
https://www.stokespace.com - company_press_release · 2026-09-12
On September 8, 2026, Stoke announced an initial $1 billion Series E closing, $2.3 billion in total capital raised, an early-2027 Pathfinder first-flight target, and a 15-ton-class Block 2 targeted for 2029.
https://www.stokespace.com/news/stoke-space-series-e - company_technical_update · 2026-09-12
Stoke describes Pathfinder as an orbital, payload-carrying vehicle that will prove full-reuse technologies and operating capability before Block 2 scales capacity; it plans multiple Pathfinder missions in 2027 and 2028.
https://www.stokespace.com/news/scaling-nova - company_contract_announcement · 2026-09-12
The Space Force selected Stoke for NSSL Phase 3 Lane 1, enabling competition for firm-fixed-price launch task orders and providing a $5 million initial capabilities-assessment task order.
https://www.stokespace.com/news/stoke-space-selected-for-the-u-s-space-forces-5-6b-nssl-program - company_partnership_announcement · 2026-09-12
NASA and Stoke are collaborating on reusable upper-stage entry, descent, and landing technology, with Stoke explicitly linking the capability to routine Earth return and commercial downmass.
https://www.stokespace.com/news/stoke-space-and-nasa-partner-to-scale-reusable-launch-and-re-entry
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