US to build nuclear reactor on the moon
Sean Duffy, the new Nasa head, is preparing to announce plans to install a small reactor on the moon to allow astronauts to undertake lengthy missions on the lunar surface and pave the way for future Mars expeditions.
A directive from the space agency, seen by The Telegraph argues that a reactor is necessary to stop rival superpowers effectively colonising the Moon and establishing US 'keep-out' zones.
China and Russia previously announced a joint effort to put a reactor on the Moon by the mid-2030s, it notes.
'The first country to do so could potentially declare a keep-out zone which would significantly inhibit the United States from establishing a planned Artemis presence if not there first,' the directive says, referring to existing plans to explore the Moon and prepare for missions to Mars.
Nasa needs to 'move quickly' to 'support a future lunar economy' and 'strengthen our national security in space', it adds.
Solar panels are ineffective because nights on the Moon last the equivalent of two weeks on Earth.
A Nasa official said: 'If we are going to have a habitable system on the Moon then we have to bring power.'
He said small reactors were already in use on submarines and aircraft carriers. 'They solve the problem,' he added.
Mr Duffy, who is also the US transport secretary, has directed Nasa to seek industry proposals for a minimum 100 kilowatt reactor to launch by 2030.
The agency had already been working on a 40-kilowatt reactor to use on the moon by the early part of the next decade.
Mr Duffy was named interim head of Nasa after Donald Trump abruptly withdrew the nomination of Jared Isaacman, a tech billionaire and commercial astronaut.
The move deepened a rift between Mr Trump and Elon Musk, the SpaceX billionaire and until that point one of the president's closest political allies.
Mr Musk, who had pushed for Mr Isaacman to be named to the top job, wrote on social media in May: 'It is rare to find someone so competent and good hearted'.
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