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Rolls-Royce unveils early-stage design for space nuclear reactor - Space.com
Feb 01, 2023 1 min, 0 secs
Nuclear fission systems, which harness the energy released in the splitting of atoms, could be used to power astronaut bases on the moon or Mars.

Or they could help shorten the travel time to the Red Planet, which takes six to nine months to reach with current-generation propulsion systems.

Nuclear fusion — the power source of the sun and other stars, which flows from the merging of atoms — could also one day be part of humanity's spaceflight portfolio.

Speaking generally, some of the concerns of space fission or fusion power include safety for astronauts; portability, as more mass means a more expensive mission; and longevity in a harsh and rugged environment.

In the film, astronaut Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon) — in search of warmth in an unheated rover and desperately digging up a reactor buried in regolith for safety reasons — said his Red Planet training manual had a section about surface operations labeled "Don't Dig Up The Big Box of Plutonium, Mark."

Elizabeth's reporting includes an exclusive with Office of the Vice-President of the United States, speaking several times with the International Space Station, witnessing five human spaceflight launches on two continents, working inside a spacesuit, and participating in a simulated Mars mission.

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