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Stoke Space Technologies is an American
In 2023, Stoke Space had an interview with 
In 15 seconds, the vehicle ignited its 15 thrust chambers (half of the amount used on the operational vehicle), lifted 30 feet off the ground, showed its ability to steer without gimballing the engine like traditional rockets, and tested the actively cooled heatshield before successfully landing under three landing struts. In October 2023, Stoke Space announced a $100 million
space launch
Space launch is the earliest part of a flight that reaches space. Space launch involves liftoff, when a rocket or other space launch vehicle leaves the ground, floating ship or midair aircraft at the start of a flight. Liftoff is of two main ...
company based in the Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
suburb of Kent, Washington.
History
The company was founded by a group of formerBlue Origin
Blue Origin, LLC is an American privately funded aerospace manufacturer and sub-orbital spaceflight services company headquartered in Kent, Washington. Founded in 2000 by Jeff Bezos, the founder and executive chairman of Amazon, the company is ...
and SpaceX
Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) is an American spacecraft manufacturer, launcher, and a satellite communications corporation headquartered in Hawthorne, California. It was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk with the stated goal of ...
employees. In May 2020, the company won a $225,000 SBIR Phase I grant from the National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National ...
to work on an integrated propulsion solution for reusable rocket upper stages. In February 2021, the company raised $9.1 million in seed funding in a round led by venture funds NFX Guild and MaC Venture Capital. In December 2021, the company raised $65 million in a Series A round
A series A round (also known as series A financing or series A investment) is the name typically given to a company's first significant round of venture capital financing. The name refers to the class of preferred stock sold to investors in exc ...
led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures
Breakthrough Energy is the umbrella name of several organizations, founded by Bill Gates in 2015, that aim to accelerate innovation in sustainable energy and in other technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It invests in a variety of sta ...
, funding development and testing of the upper stage of a reusable launch vehicle.
In 2022, the company created a prototype of their second stage engine ring. Their prototype had at least 22 static fire
Launch vehicle system tests assess the readiness of a launch system to safely reach orbit. Launch vehicles undergo system tests before they launch. A wet dress rehearsal (WDR) and a more extensive static fire tests a fully assembled launch vehicl ...
s in total.
In 2023, Stoke Space had an interview with Tim Dodd
The logo of "Tim Dodd, the Everyday Astronaut"
Tim Dodd (born February 27, 1985), also known as Everyday Astronaut, is an American science communicator, YouTube content creator, photographer, and musician. After becoming popular with his space- ...
(also known as The Everyday Astronaut), wherein the CEO Andy Lapsa revealed their plan to create a fully and rapidly reusable orbital rocket.
In the first months of 2023, Stoke Space finished the construction of Hopper1, a full-scale second stage prototype, intended to test fluid mechanics
Fluid mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the mechanics of fluids (liquids, gases, and plasmas) and the forces on them.
It has applications in a wide range of disciplines, including mechanical, aerospace, civil, chemical and ...
in the vehicle. On March 8, 2023, the company was given LC-14
Launch Complex 14 (LC-14) is a List of Merritt Island launch sites, launch site at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. LC-14 was used for various manned and unmanned Atlas (rocket family), Atlas launches, including the February 1962, ' ...
in Florida as a future launch pad for their vehicles. On March 18, Stoke Space's second stage conducted a Wet Dress Rehearsal
Launch vehicle system tests assess the readiness of a launch system to safely reach orbit. Launch vehicles undergo system tests before they launch. A wet dress rehearsal (WDR) and a more extensive static fire tests a fully assembled launch vehicl ...
, where the company loaded both Liquid Oxygen (LOX) and Liquid Hydrogen
Liquid hydrogen (LH2 or LH2) is the liquid state of the element hydrogen. Hydrogen is found naturally in the molecular H2 form.
To exist as a liquid, H2 must be cooled below its critical point of 33 K. However, for it to be in a fully l ...
into the stage's tanks, preparing it for launch without igniting the engines.
On September 17, 2023, Stoke Space conducted a 10 meter "hop" test of "Hopper2", testing their unique differential steering method.
In 15 seconds, the vehicle ignited its 15 thrust chambers (half of the amount used on the operational vehicle), lifted 30 feet off the ground, showed its ability to steer without gimballing the engine like traditional rockets, and tested the actively cooled heatshield before successfully landing under three landing struts. In October 2023, Stoke Space announced a $100 million Series B
A venture round is a type of funding round used for venture capital financing, by which startup companies obtain investment, generally from venture capitalists and other institutional investors. The availability of venture funding is among the ...
funding round led by Industrious Ventures.
In April 2024, the company announced it had completed assembly and installation of a first stage engine for test firing. In May 2024, the company announced significant construction progress in their engine test firing stand. The first successful hot fire of the Stoke Space Full Flow Staged Combustion (FFSC)) Engine reported in June 2024.
Facilities
The company operates a rocket test facility on a site nearMoses Lake
Moses Lake is a lake and reservoir along the course of Crab Creek, in Washington state, USA.
Moses Lake is part of the Columbia River basin, as Crab Creek is a tributary of the Columbia River.
Although originally a shallow natural lake, Mose ...
's airport.
Technology
References
Further reading
* *External links
* {{Official website, https://www.stokespace.com Private spaceflight companies Rocket engine manufacturers of the United States Aerospace companies of the United States Companies based in Seattle Companies based in Washington (state) Technology companies established in 2019