NASA announced that the first stage of its plans to place a nuclear fission reactor on the Moon has been completed. This week, NASA revealed that the first stage of its grand project to construct a small nuclear reactor on the Moon that could produce electricity and be utilized for future Moon missions and outposts is coming to an end.
NASA’s Glenn Research Center’s Fission Surface Power project manager, Todd Tofil, spoke with IndianExpress.com in 2022 and described the nuclear fission reactor the space agency hopes to place on the moon. Read that by clicking the following link.
In 2022, three contracts worth $5 million were given to private companies by the space agency. The contracts required the companies to create an initial design that encompassed the reactor, its power conversion, heat rejection, power management, and distribution systems, along with an estimated cost and development schedule. NASA wants to maintain a human presence on the Moon for a minimum of ten years, and this nuclear reactor may help them achieve that goal.
“To demonstrate that nuclear power is a clean, safe, and dependable option, a nuclear power source demonstration on the moon is necessary. Because night lasts for the same length of time on Earth’s only satellite as it does on Earth, solar power is limited on the Moon. However, a nuclear reactor could produce power continuously without relying on the weather or other external factors, even if it were to be installed in permanently shadowed areas where water ice might be present.
