Mock-up of the Rolls-Royce lunar micro-reactor: Rolls-Royce By David Szondy, Published by New Atlas, 10 December 2023 Rolls-Royce gave us a glimpse of the nuclear future of next-generation spacecraft and Moon bases when it unveiled a mock-up of its Space Micro-Reactor Concept Model at the UK Space Conference in Belfast, which ran
Los Alamos National Laboratory's concept of a space nuclear reactor system to produce high-power electricity. (Image credit: LANL) By Andrew Jones, Published by Space.com, 10 November 2023 The aerospace giant will develop power and propulsion systems under its JETSON project. Lockheed Martin has been handed a contract to work on nuclear-powered
A NASA concept for a lunar fission power system. NASA is funding three teams to study reactor designs but the future of the program is uncertain. Credit: NASA By Sandra Erwin, Published by SpaceNews, 3 October 2023 Intuitive Machines, Lockheed Martin and Westinghouse Government Services will support AFRL’s project known
By Peter Gillibrand & Rob Thomas, Publised by the BBC, 4 September 2023 Scientists have developed an energy source which could allow astronauts to live on the Moon for long periods of time. The Nasa-led Artemis Program hopes for an outpost on the Moon by around 2030. Bangor University has
By Victor Gilinsky, Published by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 22 August 2023 On the night of July 27, the US Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2024. The Senate-approved bill included a 20-year extension of the Price-Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act, which provides that
By Rob Coppinger, Published by The Royal Aeronautical Society, 15 September 2023 While the current Oppenheimer blockbuster film focused on the destructive power of nuclear weapons, more peaceful uses of atomic propulsion for space exploration are now gaining once again momentum. ROB COPPINGER reports. Nuclear fission and fusion power propulsion
By Christian Davenport, Published by The Washington Post, 27 July 2023 If successful, the technology could dramatically cut the travel time to Mars Lockheed Martin on Wednesday won a contract to build a nuclear thermal rocket engine, a key technology long coveted by both NASA and the Pentagon that could
DARPA believes that nuclear-powered propulsion could enable rapid maneuver in space — a capability that is difficult to achieve with current electric and chemical propulsion systems. (DARPA) By Courtney Albon, Published by Defense News, 26 July 2023 WASHINGTON — The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and NASA selected Lockheed Martin
