UK sets sights on nuclear rocket for faster deep space exploration imeche.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from imeche.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
| UPDATED: 13:53, Tue, Jan 12, 2021
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The UK Space Agency and Rolls-Royce have signed a research contract that will explore the feasibility of nuclear propulsion in powering deep space exploration and crewed missions to Mars. Nuclear power has long been considered a potential replacement for chemical propulsion, which has served human interests in space from Apollo 11 to the building of the International Space Station (ISS). But chemical propulsion, which burns rocket fuel and oxidiser to create thrust, is costly and inefficient.
MIL-OSI UK: Rolls-Royce and UK Space Agency launch first ever study into nuclear-powered space exploration foreignaffairs.co.nz - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from foreignaffairs.co.nz Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
This new research contract will see planetary scientists work together to explore the game-changing potential of nuclear power as a more plentiful source.
British spacecraft could travel to Mars in half the time it now takes by using nuclear propulsion engines built by Rolls-Royce under a new deal with the UK Space Agency. The aerospace company hopes that nuclear-powered engines could help astronauts make it to Mars in three to four months, twice as fast as the most powerful chemical engines, and unlock deeper space exploration in the decades to come. The partnership between Rolls-Royce and the UK.