Washington: The American space agency NASA has proposed a plan to install a nuclear reactor on the moon to facilitate future space missions.
Known as the Fission Surface Power Project, this project is of great importance to NASA in relation to the Artemis program. This project could provide energy on a continuous basis in abundance without being affected by any conditions on the Moon.
The project could play a major role in establishing long-term human settlements on the Moon and also help in furthering future space exploration.
NASA has recently completed the initial phase of the project to be launched in 2022. In this phase, three contracts worth $5 million were signed for the design of the fission reactor.
The contracts were awarded by NASA to Lockheed Martin, Westinghouse and IX. Each contract covers a 12-month period during which the companies will build the initial design.
These designs must include the reactor, its power conversion, heat rejection, power management and distribution systems.
NASA can use these nuclear reactors to produce light and energy in the permanently dark regions of the moon.
