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Founded in 2016, Deep Blue Aerospace has been solely focused on the reusable race. Its main feature is the many VTVL hop tests the company has performed, further emphasizing this goal.
Nebula 1
Nebula 1
Noticeably, this is much smaller scale reusable rocket, compared to Falcon 9 and ZhuQue 3. Deep Blue seeks to upgrade to the Nebula 2, which will have a tonnage of 25,000 kilograms.
Fuel : Kerosene and liquid oxygen
Tonnage : 2,000 kilograms
Maiden flight was scheduled for the first quarter of 2025, but that has passed and there is no information to support any progress on the vehicle.
Hopper Test 1
Hopper Test 1
On October 13, 2021, Deep Blue Aerospace conducted a 100 meter high VTVL.
https://spacenews.com/deep-blue-aerospace-conducts-100-meter-vtvl-rocket-test/
Hopper Test 2
Hopper Test 2
On May 6, 2022, Deep Blue Aerospace conducted a 1km high VTVL.
Hopper Test 3
Hopper Test 3
On Sep 22, 2024, Deep Blue Aerospace conducted a VTVL with three of its own Thunder R engine (arranged in a single line). The vehicle flew to a max height of 10 kilometers, matching the height set by Land Space just 11 days earlier.
The test flight also featured four deployable landing legs, which deployed successfully but software issues led to the vehicle hovering 0.5 above the ground and then crashing down.
Deep Blue also published a yearly update for the progress on Nebula 1. Pretty neat, similar to Terran R but yearly instead of monthly.
Gridfin +Landing Legs Test
Gridfin +Landing Legs Test
The landing legs were demonstrated on hopper 3 but not the grid-fins.
Deep Blue Aerospace has quite a few VTVL tests, each with increasing difficulty. The time difference between the second and third VTVL tests can be explained by the development of the Thunder R engine and landing legs, which were featured in the third test flight.
Even though it may seem like this company it set to attempt its first launch in 2025, I honestly don't see it happening. It makes a huge difference when you choose to start pursuing reusability from the start, rather than having a foundation with expendable rockets first, as with Land Space or even once with Space Pioneer.
Nebula 1 Designs
Nebula 1 Designs
Failed 4th VTVL Test
Failed 4th VTVL Test
Between July 28th and August 2nd 2025, Deep Blue likely conducted the fourth VTVL test for Nebula 1. From satellite imagery, you can see a difference in the landscape between the two dates, implying that an explosion occurred.
Since it is less than a kilometer away from the launch site, and that the test vehicle has been waiting at the site since the beginning of the year, everything suggests that this indeed was a failed VTVL test.
source (Coordinates 41.73069° N, 101.09637° E on Apple Maps)
August 2nd
August 2nd
(HD version is locked behind a paywall)
August 12th
August 12th
Covered with sand/dirt
First and Second Stage Static Fires
First and Second Stage Static Fires
In September 2025, Deep Blue Aero conducted a static fire of the Nebula 1 second stage.
https://www.china-in-space.com/p/nebula-1s-second-stage-conducts-static
In November 2025, Deep Blue Aero conducted a static fire of the Nebula 1 first stage.
https://www.china-in-space.com/p/two-reusable-rockets-complete-static
Nebula 1A Completed
Nebula 1A Completed
In March 2026, Deep Blue Aerospace successfully moved the first Nebula 1 to the launch pad.
https://www.china-in-space.com/p/deep-blue-aerospaces-nebula-1a-appears
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