NASA and the DARPA’s Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations, or DRACO, program intends to use this high-assay, low-enriched uranium fuel in its nuclear thermal propulsion engine.

NASA and the DARPA’s Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations, or DRACO, program intends to use this high-assay, low-enriched uranium fuel in its nuclear thermal propulsion engine.

These systems do not require any sort of ignition system, so they’re reliable. But these rockets must carry oxygen with them into space, which can weigh them down. Unlike chemical propulsion systems, ...

In 2023, NASA and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced they're working on a nuclear thermal rocket engine, so that NASA can send a crewed spacecraft to Mars.

NASA and DARPA announced in 2023 that they were working on a nuclear thermal rocket engine, with a planned launch demonstration as early as 2027.

Nuclear thermal propulsion, or NTP, is a potentially game-changing technology for NASA's crewed missions to Mars in the 2040 timeframe.

Nuclear thermal propulsion systems have roughly twice the specific impulse of chemical rockets, which means they could cut the travel time by a factor of 2.

The DARPA-funded Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) program seeks to showcase the viability of a nuclear thermal rocket in orbit, with a targeted launch date in 2027.

NASA and the DARPA’s Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations, or DRACO, program intends to use this high-assay, low-enriched uranium fuel in its nuclear thermal propulsion engine.

In 2023, NASA and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced they're working on a nuclear thermal rocket engine, so that NASA can send a crewed spacecraft to Mars.

advertisement 10-06-2024 TECH How rockets could travel to Mars in half the time with nuclear thermal propulsion Nuclear propulsion could have a leg up on chemical propulsion for a few reasons.