(MENAFN- Khaama Press)
NASA has plans to put a nuclear power plant on the Moon within this decade but it's publicly asking for help to make it happen.
The space agency and the US Department of Energy are asking for ideas on how to build a uranium-powered nuclear reactor and send it to the lunar surface.
A statement from the Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory confirmed it was teaming up with Nasa for the project.
It said the duo were hoping to“establish a durable, high-power, sun-independent power source for NASA missions.”
The US space agency is“seeking proposals from nuclear and space industry leaders” on how the nuclear power system could be created and sent to space inside a 12 foot long, 18-foot wide rocket.
The deadline for proposals is February 19 next year and the aim is to have the lunar nuclear power plant up and running by 2030.
If successful, the reactor could make missions on the Moon a lot easier because it could power a base on the Moon for astronauts.
Jim Reuter, an associate administrator for Nasa's Space Technology Mission Directorate in Washington, DC, explains:“Ample energy will be key to future space exploration.
“I hope fissile surface energy systems will greatly benefit our plans for energy architecture for the Moon and Mars and even spur innovation for solar energy.” used here on Earth.”
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