As the United States accelerates its push for lunar dominance, nuclear power is emerging as the essential energy solution, but critical testing infrastructure on Earth remains elusive.

I’ve grown up with rockets that burn chemical fuel, but NASA’s next big leap in propulsion could make those engines look as dated as steam trains. By turning to nuclear power in space, the agency is ...

Lockheed Martin's concept for a fission surface power (FSP) system on the surface of the moon. Credit: Lockheed Martin No technology holds more transformative potential for America’s space aspirations ...

As Russia threatens atomic attacks on Ukraine and its Western allies, and prototypes a nuclear-armed spacecraft, space powers across Europe are racing to defend against nuclear strikes in orbit.

A widespread demand for nuclear power has led some to call this period a “nuclear renaissance,” one that will continue to build momentum in 2026. This growing need is being driven by two primary use ...

America’s last nuclear detonation was nothing special. Smaller than the bomb that killed 73,000 people in Nagasaki, it exploded 1,397 feet below the Nevada desert. It shook the ground, created a ...

U.S. Satellite Nuclear Detonation Detection Capability: Options and Impacts This appendix includes information that illustrates the concerns described in Chapter 2 of the unclassified text regarding ...

NASA’s push for a new nuclear rocket engine is not just another upgrade to the hardware we strap to the bottom of spacecraft. It is an attempt to rewrite the basic rules of how far, how fast, and how ...