Posted on by David Dickinson

BluShift Aerospace Tests MAREVL Engine, Eyes Move to Kennedy Space Center

MARVEL Test
bluShift runs a full-scale test of its MARVL engine. Credit: bluShift Aerospace

With the first test of its MAREVL Engine complete, Maine’s space launch startup bluShift Aerospace looks to expand operations.

Move over, SpaceX, RocketLab and Astra. A new space launch startup is looking to get into the small satellite launch business. bluShift Aerospace based out of Brunswick, Maine, recently completed a test of its full-scale (Modular Adaptable Rocket Engine for Vehicle Launch (MAREVL) at its Brunswick site, ahead of a launch of its Starless Rogue rocket, possibly as early as late this year.

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Posted on by David Dickinson

BluShift Aerospace Launches Stardust 1.0 Rocket

Stardust 1.0 launch

Maine-based BluShift Aerospace launches of a unique rocket from a Cold War Air Force base.

A small company took a major step towards the reality of a ‘Spaceport Maine’ this past weekend. After several attempts, the Maine-based company BluShift Aerospace successfully launched its first rocket from Loring Commerce Center in Northern Maine this past weekend, with the liftoff of Stardust 1.0.

The day dawned clear, but a chilly -14 degrees Fahrenheit (-26 degrees Celsius). The launch of the single-stage 20-foot high Stardust 1.0 rocket went off at 2:47 PM Eastern Standard Time (EST)/19:47 Universal Time (UT) on Sunday, January 31st, reaching an apogee of 4,054 feet (1,236 meters). For the first launch, the rocket was actually purposely under-fueled to stay under FAA time and height restrictions for amateur rocketry, though the company has big plans for Stardust and a new generation of rockets, leading up to orbital launches from Maine in coming years.

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