NASA Completes The First Stage Of The Massive Project To Build A Nuclear Reactor On The Moon

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.

Aiming to develop an initial design that included the reactor, its power conversion, heat rejection, power management, and distribution systems, as well as estimated costs and a development schedule, the space agency also awarded three contracts worth $5 million to private companies in 2022. In order to support NASA's goal of maintaining a human presence on the Moon for a minimum of ten years, this nuclear reactor may be very significant.

"It is necessary to demonstrate a nuclear power source's safety, cleanliness, and dependability on the moon. According to a press release from NASA Headquarters in Washington, Trudy Kortes, program director for Technology Demonstration Missions at NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate, stated that while the lunar night presents technical challenges, having a power source like this nuclear reactor that runs independently of the Sun is an enabling option for long-term exploration and science efforts on the Moon.

On Earth's only satellite, night lasts for the equivalent of fourteen days, so solar power is limited there. But 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.