New small fission reactor for deep-space missions demonstrated
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John Bounds of Los Alamos National Laboratory working on reactor demonstration
Artists concept of spacecraft using the Los Alamos reactor
Side view of the Los Alamos reactor
A conventional radioisotope thermal generator as used by NASA deep space probes
Los Alamos reactor showing heat pipes
Artists concept of a robotic assembly plant for the Los Alamos reactor
The core of the Los Alamos reactor and beryllium reflector
Cutaway view of the Los Alamos reactor
Article Summary
Exploring the regions of deep space beyond Mars means sending probes where solar power isn’t practical. Since the 1960s, NASA has equipped its Apollo missions and unmanned explorers with Radioisotope Thermal Generators (RTGs). These have worked very well, but they run on plutonium 238, which is currently in short supply. Therefore, the Los Alamos National Laboratory is developing a new small nuclear reactor for spacecraft that uses uranium instead of plutonium to power Stirling engines and generate electricity.
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