The U.S. is planning to build nuclear moon rockets before China
Author : Saipriya Iyer | Published Date : 2020-02-26
The Pentagon seems to have come up with a plan to accelerate space travel by extending its satellite’s reach closer to the moon by tens of thousands of miles. Apparently, the agency is working on developing an atomic-powered, high-tech, nuclear thermal propulsion engine to boost space expedition.
Reportedly, the U.S military is planning to launch maneuverable satellites between the moon and earth’s vast space, which is often called as cislunar space, before the Chinese.
Both Chinese and American space agencies along with privately-held corporations are doubling down their efforts to mine the moon for minerals. It is predicted that these minerals would play a pivotal role in furthering their deep-space missions while helping humanity to commence its first trip to Mars.
Speaking on the move, Jared Adams, spokesperson, DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), said that a nimble nuclear thermal propulsion vehicle would allow the agency to gain a perspective about the vivid activities that happen in this vast volume of space called cislunar space.
As per sources, the budget requested by DARPA includes $21 million for the DRACO (Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations) program.
However, the Congress offered $10 million to DARPA in 2020 for studying the DRACO engine. Meanwhile, the 2021 budget could enable the defense agency to build its components. According to the plan, DRACO will be tested by DARPA before leaving for U.S. Air Force’s routine operations.
Basically, DRACO is a tiny nuclear reactor on top of a space rocket. It is also called as a high-assay LEU (low-enriched uranium) nuclear-thermal propulsion system. The function of this reactor is to warm up propellant which would later accelerate through the nozzle, thrusting the satellite in the opposite path.
Essentially, this nuclear-thermal engines will not be launched from the Earth’s surface, instead it would be used while travelling long distances through space.
Source Credit: https://www.thedailybeast.com/pentagon-prepping-nuclear-moon-rocket-to-beat-china-into-cislunar-space
About Author
Saipriya Iyer . .
Saipriya Iyer presently works as a content developer for fractovia.org. Having dabbled with the domain of content creation for nearly half a decade, she now boasts of an enviable portfolio, holding substantial experience in penning down pieces related to technology, finance, and a wide spectrum of other industry verticals. A qualified computer engineering graduate from the University of Pune, Saipriya can often be found leveraging her knowledge of software technology and electronics in her write-ups. She can be contacted at- [email protected] | https://twitter.com/saipriya_i
Related News
Hero MotoCorp under investigation by Ministry of Corporate Affairs
The Indian Ministry of Corporate Affairs has reportedly ordered a probe into Hero MotoCorp to examine its association with an external vendor regarding alleged fund diversion. The objective of the investigation, conducted in the "public interest," is to evaluate the Hero MotoCorp owners... Read More>>
UK: Residents receive bills of up to £49,000 after Ovo acquires SSE
Customers of Ovo, the energy supplier were reportedly left shocked when they received energy bills of up to £49,000, due to data errors that led to overinflated energy bills for some residents. Ovo accepted that some of its customers have been affected by erroneous meter readings, and it bl... Read More>>
Bob Iger returns to Disney as CEO less than a year post retirement
Bob Iger, the ex-CEO of Walt Disney Co., is reportedly coming back to the mass media giant less than a year after his retirement. The surprise announcement comes at a time when Disney is struggling to earn profits from its streaming TV services. According to a statement released by Disney late Su... Read More>>