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NASA and the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) are to collaborate on development of advanced nuclear thermal propulsion technology for rocket engines. NASA and DARPA will partner on the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) programme with a view to enabling NASA crewed missions to Mars.
- Source: NEI Magazine
- Date: Friday, 27 January 2023
- Original article: neimagazine.com/news/newsnasa-and-darpa-to-develop-nuclear-rocket-engines-10546261
The European Space Agency (ESA) has awarded a contract to Belgian company Tractebel to evaluate the possibility of producing plutonium-238 (Pu-238) for use in space exploration. Separately, US company X-energy, working as part of a General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) team, is to develop key fuel fabrication processes in support of a first-of-a-kind rocket powered by nuclear thermal propulsion under a contract awarded by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
- Source: World Nuclear News
- Date: Thursday, 02 September 2021
- Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/European-and-US-nuclear-companies-contribute-to-sp
Three reactor design concept proposals for a nuclear thermal propulsion system for deep space missions have been selected by the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Department of Energy (DOE). The reactor will be a critical component of a nuclear thermal engine, which would utilise high-assay low-enriched uranium fuel.
- Source: World Nuclear News
- Date: Thursday, 15 July 2021
- Original article: world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/NASA-selects-reactor-concepts-for-deep-space-explo
The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) said on 11 June that it had recently awarded contracts to General Atomics (Track A, $22M) and Blue Origin (Track B, $2.5M) with Ultra Safe Nuclear Technologies (USNC-Tech) providing critical support to both prime contractors in the first phase of the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (Draco) programme. Draco will develop a nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) system for cislunar operations, targeting a full-scale, on-orbit demonstration in 2025. USNC-Tech is the only company participating in both Track A and Track B teams.
- Source: NEI Magazine
- Date: Wednesday, 23 June 2021
- Original article: neimagazine.com/news/newsus-darpa-awards-contracts-for-draco-programme-8840312