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NASA’s plans for a Moon base have been capturing headlines lately — but today it’s putting Mars back in the crosshairs with a first-of-its-kind nuclear mission it says will launch by the end of 2028.
It’ll be the “first nuclear powered interplanetary spacecraft,” according to a NASA announcement, dubbed “Space Reactor‑1 Freedom.”
The goal is to demonstrate “advanced nuclear electric propulsion in deep space,” a concept has remained highly elusive, despite the theoretical advantages of high energy efficiency and the ability to cover vast distances.
“Nuclear electric propulsion provides an extraordinary capability for efficient mass transport in deep space and enables high power missions beyond Jupiter where solar arrays are not effective,” NASA wrote.
Once it reaches the Red Planet, the SR-1 Freedom mission will deploy three helicopters roughly the same size as NASA’s groundbreaking Ingenuity, to “continue exploring” the Red Planet.
The agency has high hopes for its nuclear powered mission, claiming that it “will establish flight heritage nuclear hardware, set regulatory and launch precedent, and activate the industrial base for future fission power systems across propulsion, surface, and long‑duration missions.”
Interestingly, the mission will repurpose the propulsion and power element (PPE) from its Lunar Gateway, a proposed space station in the Moon’s orbit, which has officially been put on hold by the agency.
The idea behind using nuclear fission to reach the deserted planet has been around since at least the 1950s. But turning the flashy concept into reality could prove challenging. For one, NASA will need to source enriched uranium to give its rocket the best chance of success, which is easier said than done.
Put simply, there are two core types of nuclear propulsion being developed. Nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) involves using a fission reactor using uranium to heat up extremely cold liquid propellant, such as a store of hydrogen, and releasing the hot gas out of a nuzzle to generate thrust. A nuclear electric rocket, like NASA’s SR-1 Freedom mission also involves splitting atoms using a reactor, but using the power to drive an ion thruster or other method of electric propulsion instead.
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