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With nuclear technology set to underpin new developments in space travel, NASA has awarded Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation a contract to manufacture and test fuel and develop the design of a nuclear thermal propulsion engine for near-term missions. Separately, Space Nuclear Power Corporation has partnered with Lockheed Martin Corporation and BWX Technologies for the US Space Force/Air Force's JETSON nuclear electric propulsion demonstration project, while Framatome has announced the creation of a new brand, Framatome Space.

Date: Saturday, 21 October 2023
Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Nuclear-companies-sign-up-for-space-technology-mis

Ultra Safe Nuclear Corporation (USNC) has delivered uranium nitride coated uranium oxycarbide tristructural isotropic (TRISO) fuel to NASA's Space Nuclear Power and Propulsion programme. The company says this demonstrates the "flexibility, precision and value" of its Pilot Fuel Manufacturing Facility (PFM).

Date: Thursday, 15 June 2023
Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/USNC-delivers-TRISO-particle-fuel-to-NASA

The UK Space Agency has commissioned the National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) to develop Americium-241 fuel for space batteries at its new GBP19 million ($23m) laboratory in Cumbria.

Date: Wednesday, 21 December 2022
Original article: neimagazine.com/news/newsuk-national-nuclear-laboratory-develops-fuel-for-new-space-battery-10451603

The design was produced as part of a NASA-funded study Image courtesy General Atomics US-based General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) has delivered a design concept for a nuclear thermal propulsion reactor to power future astronaut missions to Mars.

The design was produced as part of a NASA-funded study. GA-EMS said its design exceeded the key performance parameters requested by NASA.

The reactor concept incorporates advancements in modern nuclear materials and manufacturing methods with experience from GA-EMS’s involvement on NASA Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) Project Rover in the 1960s. Project Rover was one of the first programmes to demonstrate the feasibility of space-based nuclear thermal propulsion.

GA fabricated approximately six tonnes of the nuclear fuel kernels for the project. In 1965, the company was also directly involved in nuclear fuel testing and characterisation for the SNAP-10A reactor, the only US nuclear power reactor launched into space, which powered the satellite for 43 days. The fuel used for that reactor is the same fuel that has been used since the 1950s in General Atomics Triga reactors.

Date: Wednesday, 16 September 2020
Original article: nucnet.org/news/general-atomics-submits-nuclear-reactor-concept-for-missions-to-mars-9-2-2020

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