NASA reveals plans to build a nuclear reactor on the Moon

Specifically, NASA said that the agency has announced three contracts to develop design concepts in cooperation with the Department of Energy (DOE). Military company Lockheed Martin and US leader in the nuclear industry Westinghouse will also participate in the project.

NASA hopes that the blueprint for a 'surface fusion power system' will be ready for release by the end of the decade. John Wagner, director of DOE's Idaho National Laboratory, calls the project "an achievable first step toward helping the United States move toward establishing nuclear power on the Moon."

According to NASA, three 12-month contracts, each worth $5 million, will fund initial design concepts for a 40-kilowatt fusion power system. NASA requires the system to be capable of operating for at least 10 years in the harsh environment of the Moon. The agency also claims that if successfully built on the lunar surface, the reactors could be used for the final mission to Mars.

Besides Lockheed Margin and Westinghouse, the third contractor that will participate in this project is IX - a joint venture between spacecraft designer Intuitive Machines and X-Energy, based in Texas.

NASA notes that smaller, lighter fusion systems can provide 'continuous power regardless of location, with available sunlight and other natural environmental conditions'. The agency also hopes to receive important information from the nuclear industry to develop atomic propulsion systems for deep space exploration missions.

Previously, NASA revealed that nuclear reactors would be built on Earth and then sent to the Moon, in order to provide sustainable energy, as well as future space exploration. The plan to build a surface fusion power system includes a uranium-fueled reactor core, a system to convert nuclear energy into usable electricity, and a heat management system for cooling.

The contracts are part of the Artemis program, an American aerospace initiative with the goal of returning to the Moon and sending the first women and people of color to the lunar surface. The program's original plan was to take place in 2024, but last year NASA said it was no longer on track to achieve this goal, citing lack of funding.

In March, NASA announced plans to send humans to Mars by 2040. Less than a week later, the agency had to cancel the test of the Artemis I spacecraft due to technical problems. .