![\"The](\"https:\/\/wp-assets.futurism.com\/2020\/10\/darpa-nuclear-rocket-moon-missions-300x158.jpg\")
<\/div>Nuclear Thermal Propulsion<\/h2>
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) just handed out a $14 million dollar contract to develop and test a nuclear thermal space propulsion system (NTP), Space.com<\/em> reports<\/a>.<\/p> The concept is simple: an on-board reactor generates heat, which is then pushed through a nozzle to produce thrust.<\/p> The contract, to a company called Gryphon Technologies, is meant to support DARPA’s Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) program — essentially a project investigating whether the extreme temperatures produced by nuclear reactions can be used as a propulsion system.<\/p> “A successfully demonstrated NTP system will provide a leap-ahead in space propulsion capability, allowing agile and rapid transit over vast distances as compared to present propulsion approaches,” Gryphon chief engineer Tabitha Dodsonsaid in a statement<\/a>.<\/p> According to DARPA<\/a>, an NTP system offers both 10,000 times the thrust-to-weight ratio compared to electric propulsion and two to five times the efficiency of chemical propulsion.<\/p> The agency is hoping nuclear thermal propulsion will allow the US to keep up with “maintaining space domain awareness in cislunar space.”<\/p> NASA is eyeing a similar system for propelling its own spacecraft. Last year, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine called NTP a potential “game changer”<\/a> for the agency, with the potential to revolutionize space travel and enable trips to and the eventual settlement on Mars.<\/p> Such a propulsion system could even allow for the generation of artificial gravity during such long trips through outer space, according to NASA research dating back to 2014<\/a>, to address the health concerns surrounding long-term exposure to zero gravity.<\/p> READ MORE:<\/strong> US military eyes nuclear thermal rocket for missions in Earth-moon space<\/a> [Space.com<\/em>] More on nuclear propulsion:<\/strong> Nuclear Propulsion Could Be ‘Game-Changer’ for Space Exploration<\/a><\/em><\/p> The post DARPA Is Considering a Nuclear Rocket for Moon Missions<\/a> appeared first on Futurism<\/a>.<\/p> Read more: Nuclear Thermal Propulsion The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) just handed out a $14 million dollar contract to develop and test a nuclear thermal space propulsion system (NTP), Space.com reports . The concept is simple: an on-board reactor generates heat, which is then pushed through a nozzle to produce thrust. The contract,\u00a0to a company called Gryphon Technologies, is meant to support DARPA\u2019s Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) program \u2014 essentially a project investigating whether the extreme temperatures produced by nuclear reactions can be used as a propulsion system. Continue reading Covering the Distance<\/h2>
Game Changer<\/h2>
<\/strong><\/p>
DARPA Is Considering a Nuclear Rocket for Moon Missions<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"