NASA has tested a space nuclear reactor. Free Technical Library News

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NASA tested a space nuclear reactor

16.05.2018

NASA, with the support of the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), tested the Kilopower power plant, which is designed to provide energy to future American bases on the moon and Mars, as well as spacecraft for missions to the farthest corners of the solar system.

Of course, spacecraft usually use solar panels as a source of energy, but here's the problem: in the case of distance from the Sun, energy may not be enough. Alternatively, thermoelectric generators can be used, but their power is relatively small - on the order of several hundred watts, while most of these generators operate on plutonium-238.

An ideal option would be nuclear power plants, which would be useful to provide energy to promising US bases on the moon, which remain without the Sun during the 14-day lunar night. Therefore, at the end of last year, NASA launched the Kilopower project, within which it was planned to develop simple and reliable nuclear installations for space use.

Such reactors use uranium-235 as fuel, and their power can range from one to ten kilowatts. Each nuclear installation has a hollow fuel cylinder, inside of which there is a moderator rod, and outside - a neutron reflector made of beryllium oxide. Instead of thermoelectric converters, a sodium-cooled Stirling engine was used.

The Kilopower facility has been successfully tested at the Nevada test site, and the reactor has proven to be operational, stable and safe under a wide variety of conditions. Several phases of testing were carried out, in which the system went through a complete cycle from start-up, power up, operation, power reduction and shutdown in 28 hours. The space reactor coped with all the problems and never failed the testers.

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