Stoke Space

Stoke Space Technologies is an American aerospace manufacturer headquartered in Kent, Washington. Founded in 2019 by former Blue Origin and SpaceX engineers, Andy Lapsa and Tom Feldman, the company is dedicated to revolutionizing space access through the development of fully and rapidly reusable launch vehicles. Stoke Space's primary objective is to make space more accessible and sustainable, enabling a thriving space economy. The company's flagship project is the Nova rocket, a two-stage launch vehicle designed for 100% reusability. This innovative approach aims to drastically reduce the cost of launching satellites and other payloads into orbit, with a projected 20x reduction in cost to orbit. Nova is designed to deliver satellites directly to their final orbit, offering on-demand access to any orbit at any time, a capability that sets it apart in the competitive space launch market.

The technological innovation at the core of Stoke Space's strategy is its unique approach to the second stage of the rocket. While the first stage employs a reusable design similar to that of other industry players, the second stage features a novel integrated propulsion and thermal protection system. This system utilizes a ring of thrusters for propulsion and a regeneratively cooled, metallic heat shield for reentry, eliminating the need for fragile and high-maintenance thermal tiles. This design is intended to be robust, resilient to damage, and allow for rapid turnaround between flights. The company has made significant progress in developing and testing its technology, including successful 'hop' tests of its second-stage prototype and the test firing of its full-flow, staged-combustion first-stage engine. With substantial funding from investors like Breakthrough Energy Ventures and In-Q-Tel, Stoke Space is poised to become a key player in the future of space transportation and logistics, with a strong focus on sustainability and reducing the environmental impact of space launches.