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Propulsion & Power

DLR takes stake in HyImpulse as paraffin-LOX SL1 targets 2027 launch

By SpaceEnergy 02 September 2026 1 min read
DLR takes stake in HyImpulse as paraffin-LOX SL1 targets 2027 launch
Credit: HyImpulse Technologies.

(SpaceEnergy) Germany’s DLR has invested in hybrid-rocket developer HyImpulse, backing development of its paraffin and liquid-oxygen SL1 orbital launcher towards a planned first flight from Scotland in 2027.

The German Aerospace Center (DLR) said on 2 September that it is participating directly in HyImpulse Technologies’ latest financing round, alongside private and state-backed investors. The size of DLR’s investment was not disclosed.

HyImpulse, spun out of DLR propulsion research in 2018, is using the financing partly to bring the three-stage SL1 to commercial maturity and expand launch infrastructure. The company plans the rocket’s first launch from Scotland in 2027, targeting payloads of up to 600kg to low Earth orbit at around 500 km altitude.

The launcher uses HyImpulse’s hybrid propulsion technology combining solid paraffin fuel with liquid oxygen (LOX). The company has conducted more than 100 propulsion tests and continues to use DLR test infrastructure at Lampoldshausen.

Its smaller SR75 suborbital rocket completed its first flight in Australia in May 2024, with a second flight planned for the second half of 2026. HyImpulse is also developing the HyMOVE orbital transfer vehicle for deployment aboard SL1.

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