2021, January 31 –
Space.com reports that BluShift Aerospace has tested what it says is the first commercial booster rocket powered by biofuel. The Maine-based firm successfully launched its Stardust 1.0 sounding rocket on January 31st using a “bio-derived” solid fuel after multiple problems that included weather, valve pressure and igniters.
This was a modest test that reached just 4,000 feet before the 20-foot rocket parachuted back to Earth, but it proved the viability of BluShift’s MAREVL (Modular Adaptable Rocket Engine for Vehicle Launch) and associated biofuel.