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Title: UK Space Agency funds Rolls-Royce's bid to put a nuclear reactor on the moon Post by: HCK on March 19, 2023, 04:05:05 pm UK Space Agency funds Rolls-Royce's bid to put a nuclear reactor on the moon
<p>There's a global race happening to put humans back on the moon, with the <a data-i13n="cpos:1;pos:1" href="https://www.engadget.com/nasa-takes-first-step-back-to-the-moon-with-rocket-lab-capstone-cubesat-launch-101243552.html">United States[/url], <a data-i13n="cpos:2;pos:1" href="https://www.engadget.com/2017-06-30-japan-man-on-the-moon-jaxa.html">Japan[/url] and <a data-i13n="cpos:3;pos:1" href="https://www.engadget.com/2016-05-03-china-wants-to-put-a-man-on-the-moon-by-2036.html">China[/url] among the countries working to get astronauts there as soon as possible. However, infrastructure is needed for astronauts to have a place to live and work.</p><p>To that end, today, the <a data-i13n="cpos:4;pos:1" href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-space-agency-backs-rolls-royce-nuclear-power-for-moon-exploration">UK Space Agency announced funding for Rolls-Royce to build a nuclear reactor[/url] that would support a future moon base. The current £2.9 billion (~$3.52 billion) given by the UK Space Agency follows £249,000 (~$302,000) provided last year for Rolls-Royce's initial study. </p><span id="end-legacy-contents"></span><p>Engineers and scientists at Rolls-Royce are working to build a nuclear micro-reactor due to its small size and ability to function regardless of sunlight available or location. Currently, Rolls-Royce estimates the micro-reactor will go to the moon in 2029.</p><div id="2b5334ffa4804ab29ee1503372243c34"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We’re backing new research by @RollsRoyce (https://twitter.com/RollsRoyce?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) that will support future Moon missions. |