Venus Aerospace has completed testing on a new nozzle design for its rotating detonation rocket engine (RDRE), supported through a NASA Small Business Innovation Research award. The top-performing design will be integrated into a ground-based flight demonstration scheduled for this summer.

The nozzle shapes and directs power from the rocket engine, and Venus says the latest design exceeded expectations. “We’ve already proven our engine outperforms traditional systems on both efficiency and size,” says Venus Aerospace CEO Sassie Duggleby. “The technology we developed with NASA’s support will now be part of our integrated engine platform—bringing us one step closer to proving that efficient, compact and affordable hypersonic flight can be scaled.”

The Venus engine is based on rotating detonation, using supersonic shockwaves to generate more power with less fuel. It is designed to function across all flight phases—from takeoff to hypersonic cruise—without engine changes. This single-system design reduces weight, cost and complexity compared to traditional multi-engine configurations.

Venus is the first U.S. company to scale the RDRE for flight. CTO Andrew Duggleby says the engine unlocks “speed, range and agility across aerospace, defence and many other applications,” adding: “We’re confident in its readiness for flight.”

The company previously demonstrated engine efficiency in the upper 90th percentile and says its approach opens up options for use in spacecraft landers, LEO satellites, kick-stages, and hypersonic vehicles. Further developments are expected to follow.