The increasing number of crewed and uncrewed missions to the Moon by many countries and private companies necessitates a higher and more reliable power source beyond solar energy in deep space. In this context, Rolls-Royce presented a mock-up of the Space Micro-Reactor concept model at the UK Space Conference, offering a glimpse of the nuclear future of next-generation spacecraft and Moon bases.Rolls-Royce’s Moon reactor was spotted
As humanity moves deeper into space and the need to control and protect Earth-orbiting satellites increases, a more efficient propulsion system is needed. As part of a $3.6 million program funded by the UK Space Agency, Rolls-Royce is working on a new micro reactor to meet these needs. This small, advanced reactor, planned to be tested on the Moon early next decade, will provide future bases with the power needed not only to undertake very ambitious missions, but also to heat the bases so they can survive extremely cold lunar nights.
In addition, the new reactor will serve as a power source for electric and other propulsion systems that will extend their mission range to the outer Solar system and beyond. The reactor will also allow maintenance and patrol spacecraft to move between Earth orbits with greater speed and flexibility than is possible today. We had already covered all this in our previous news, but these were nothing more than a slide visual. Until Rolls-Royce unveils a model of its reactor that will answer the questions of how heat will be produced, how this heat will be transferred and how it will be converted into electricity.
The mock-up, a cutaway showing the basic design of the microreactor, looks like fuel rods (which is unlikely) or part of a heat transfer system. According to the company, the device is a fission reactor that operates on the same principle as commercial reactors on Earth, but uses an advanced design based on TRi-structural ISOtropic (TRISO) particle fuel, which replaces rods with billiard-ball-sized fuel spheres made of enriched uranium, carbon and oxygen. Of course, Rolls-Royce does not plan to use these reactors only for space purposes. These small nuclear reactors could offer a solution to decarbonise the industry and provide clean, safe and sustainable energy. They can also be used for commercial and defense purposes.
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