HELSINKI — Chinese launch startup Deep Blue Aerospace has secured fresh funding as it prepares for a first orbital launch and recovery attempt in mid-2025.
The funding round totalled nearly 500 million yuan ($68.9 million). The round was led by the Taian Yuanwang New Energy Industry Investment Fund, a subsidiary of the state-owned Taishan Industrial Development Investment Group. The funds will be mainly used for the research and development and commercialization of the Deep Blue Aerospace’s Nebula series of reusable launch vehicles.
The move also aims to create synergy with the Taian Aerospace Industry Cluster and further consolidate Deep Blue Aerospace’s technological advances in the field of reusable commercial launch vehicles, the March 6 statement read.
Huo Liang, CEO of Deep Blue Aerospace, emphasized in the statement that this funding comes at a critical point as China transitions from technical verification to the commercial operation of reusable rockets.
The investment aims to promote the commercialization of space technology and deepen the integration of the aerospace industry with the regional economy, helping Taian City build a globally leading space technology hub, according to an investor statement.
Mid-year target for Nebula-1
The company has now set a target of the middle of the year for the first launch of the Nebula-1 orbital rocket, likely from the new commercial spaceport on Hainan island. The launch will include an attempt at recovering the first stage through powered descent and landing.
The rocket has passed key tests such as engine test and control system verification, and the maturity and reliability of rocket engine technology and control systems have been continuously verified, according to the company. A full system integrated test is expected imminently.
The Nebula-1 uses a kerosene-liquid oxygen propellant mix and is designed to carry payloads of up to 2,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit (LEO). It uses nine engines on its 3.35-meter-diameter first stage. Last year Deep Blue Aerospace conducted a 179-second vertical liftoff, vertical landing (VTVL) flight test using an orbital test stage. The flight ended with an anomaly in the final moments of the landing attempt following deployment of the landing legs, leading to an explosion and loss of the stage.
Nebula-2 in 2026
Deep Blue Aerospace is also planning to launch the much larger Nebula-2 rocket as soon as 2026. The Nebula-2 will have a 5.0-meter-diameter with a length of around 70 meters. Powered by 11 Thunder RS engines, it will be capable of carrying a payload of greater than 25,000 kilograms to LEO, indicating a huge growth in capacity and ambition. Earlier figures from the company put the rocket’s capacity to LEO at 20,000 kilograms.
The Thunder RS is a self-developed 130-ton kerosene-liquid oxygen engine with a deep throttling range (30-110%), with a target of over 10 reuses. Deep Blue Aerospace has established a liquid rocket engine additive manufacturing base in Wenhe Aerospace Economic Industrial Park in the Wenhe district of Taian city, which will enable the production of up to 160 engines annually. Another commercial rocket company, Orienspace, has established a launch vehicle manufacturing base in the park.
The company is also developing suborbital tourism services, aiming to begin tourist flights in 2027.
The growth in size of Deep Blue Aerospace’s launch vehicles is, as with other commercial launch providers in China, driven by the need for greater launch capacity and cadence to allow China to construct the national Guowang and Shanghai-backed Qianfan/Thousand Sails megaconstellations.
The Chinese government reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the commercial space sector at the ongoing annual national political sessions in Beijing, with reusable rockets being a key focus.
Other new Chinese commercial rockets that could potentially launch this year include the stainless steel methane-liquid oxygen Zhuque-3 (Landspace), Tianlong-3 (Space Pioneer), Pallas-1 (Galactic Energy), Gravity-2 (Orienspace) and Hyperbola-3 (iSpace). The reusable Long March 12A from main space contractor CASC could also fly in 2025.
