USA plans nuclear power plant on the moon
New orders for NASA are on the horizon: A new space station to replace the ISS and a nuclear power plant on the moon. The USA would not be alone in this.
The side of the moon facing away from the earth
(Image: NASA)
NASA is to be given new tasks this week: the USA is to put a nuclear reactor on the moon in 2030 and, if possible, a new space station in Earth orbit in the same year. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy will issue the corresponding orders this week, reports Politico, citing internal NASA documents. Both projects would support manned missions to the moon and Mars.
Duffy, a former television presenter, is currently not only Secretary of Transportation but also interim head of NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). In his interim role, the man is clearly not limiting himself to administration, but is steering NASA in a new direction. Last week, Duffy met with Dmitry Bakanov, the head of the Russian state space company Roskosmos. The two agreed to continue operating the International Space Station (ISS) until 2028. After that, the ISS is to be brought down in a controlled manner by 2030. The space station, which was built in 1998, is getting on in years and is struggling with technical problems; it was originally only scheduled to operate until 2024.
Trump wants to cut NASA's budget significantly, particularly in research. However, the joint military and NASA project to develop nuclear rocket engines has also been stopped. Instead, Trump is planning more money for the prestigious manned space flight project.
Race USA vs. Russia & China
A new space station and an energy source on the moon fit in with this. Without the ISS, only the People's Republic of China would still have a manned space station. And together with Russia, China is planning to build a moon base including a nuclear reactor, the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), for exploring the moon with robots. Trump wants to trump this, and, according to Politico, Duffy is setting the course for a new race with Russia, this time with China as a partner.
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A space base needs electricity and heat, among other things, which explains the desire for a nuclear reactor. According to Politico, it should have an output of 100 kW. NASA should therefore commission private companies to develop and build both the new space station and the lunar nuclear power plant.
In his first term as US President, Trump ordered in 2019 that Americans should be back on the surface of the moon by 2024 at the latest. This order has not yet been implemented. According to Chinese plans, taikonauts are to land on the moon in 2030.
US President Donald Trump originally nominated billionaire Jared Isaacman to head NASA, reportedly on the advice of Elon Musk. Isaacman had attracted particular attention for testing a SpaceX spacesuit. However, Trump withdrew Isaacman's nomination at the end of May, shortly before the public rift with Musk.
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