Nordlys — launch from the top of the world
Andøya Polar Spaceport · 69°17′N
Launch from thetop of the world.
Nordlys flies small satellites to polar and sun-synchronous orbit from the Norwegian Arctic. Thirty-one launches. Twenty-nine landings.
01 — Ignition
Nine engines.One decision.
At T−3 seconds the flight computer lights all nine Fjell engines and holds the vehicle down while it checks 1,400 parameters. Only then do the clamps open.
- Thrust
- 2.1 MN
- Propellant
- LOX / CH₄
- Height
- 70 m
02 — Ascent
Through thecold, clean air.
Launching north means flying over open sea from the first second. Max-Q comes at T+01:02, eleven kilometres up, as the sky turns from blue to black.
03 — Staging
The first stagelets go.
Main engine cut-off at T+02:28. Pneumatic pushers separate the stages; the upper stage lights its vacuum engine while the booster flips with cold-gas thrusters and starts for home.
04 — Fairing
Above theaurora.
At 118 km the fairing halves open along a pyrotechnic seam. Below, on the night side of the terminator, the auroral oval the company is named for.
06 — Return
Home beforebreakfast.
Eight and a half minutes after it left, the first stage comes back to Landing Zone Nord: grid fins steering, one engine relit, four legs out. This one has flown fourteen times.
- Flights
- 14
- Touchdown
- 1.8 m/s
- Turnaround
- 9 days
07 — Deployment
Four satellites,four seconds apart.
At T+1:02:00 the dispenser releases each spacecraft on its own spring. Arrays unfold in the sun of a dawn-dusk orbit, where they will never see night.
08 — In orbit
A ring aroundthe poles.
Ninety-six spacecraft in eight planes, launched by Nordlys for eleven customers. Drag the globe.
- Altitude
- 550 km
- Inclination
- 97.6°
- Period
- 95 min
The vehicle
Isbjørn.Built to fly again.
A two-stage methane rocket sized for the polar market. The first stage comes home and flies again in nine days; the fairing halves are caught at sea.
- Height
- 70 m
- Diameter
- 3.7 m
- To SSO
- 1,850 kg
- Engines
- 9 + 1
- 0Launches
- 0Landings
- 0Spacecraft in orbit
- 0Day turnaround
05 — Telemetry
Every flight,twice.
Each vehicle streams 40,000 channels to the ground. Here is how this one climbed.
- Altitude, km
- Velocity, km/h
- Booster, km
09 — Rideshare
Plan yourmission.
- Estimate
- €1,080,000
- Earliest flight
- NL-32 · 14 Nov 2026
10 — Manifest
Next on the pad.
- NL-32
Skarv
- NET
- 14 Nov 2026
- Orbit
- SSO 550
12 Earth-observation smallsats
- NL-33
Polarlys
- NET
- 02 Dec 2026
- Orbit
- Polar 800
Arctic AIS relay
- NL-34
Fjellvind
- NET
- 19 Jan 2027
- Orbit
- SSO 525
Synthetic-aperture radar
- NL-35
Midnattsol
- NET
- 06 Feb 2027
- Orbit
- SSO 600
Rideshare · 9 customers
- NL-36
Havbris
- NET
- 27 Mar 2027
- Orbit
- Polar 700
Ocean-colour imager
- NL-37
Isbre
- NET
- 15 Apr 2027
- Orbit
- SSO 550
Ice-sheet altimetry
NL-32 Skarv · SSO 550 · 14 Nov 2026 06:42 UTC