Firefly Aerospace secured a valuation of $9.84 billion after its shares surged 55.6% in their Nasdaq debut on Thursday, as investors continue to pour capital into companies aiding expansion of the U.S.

Firefly Aerospace's ( FLY) primary revenue stream comes from launching small-to-medium payloads to low Earth orbit on the Alpha rocket at a fee of roughly $15 million per launch. The Texas-based company is looking to fill a market gap for dedicated launches of payloads too large for small rockets but not economical for heavy-lift providers.

Shares for Central Texas-based Firefly Aerospace began trading on the Nasdaq market Thursday. The company, which landed a spacecraft on the moon in March, celebrated by igniting a rocket engine north of Austin as its chief executive rang the opening bell in New York City.