UK backs Rolls-Royce project to build a nuclear reactor on the moon

The UK Space Agency said Friday it would back research by Rolls-Royce looking at the use of nuclear power on the moon.

In a statement, the government agency said researchers from Rolls-Royce had been working on a Micro-Reactor program "to develop technology that will provide power needed for humans to live and work on the Moon."

The UKSA will now provide £2.9 million (around $3.52 million) of funding for the project, which it said would "deliver an initial demonstration of a UK lunar modular nuclear reactor."

The new money builds upon £249,000 provided by the UKSA to fund a study in 2022.

"All space missions depend on a power source, to support systems for communications, life-support and science experiments," it said.

"Nuclear power has the potential to dramatically increase the duration of future Lunar missions and their scientific value."

Rolls-Royce is set to work with a range of organizations on the project, including the University of Sheffield's Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre and Nuclear AMRC, and the University of Oxford.

"Developing space nuclear power offers a unique chance to support innovative technologies and grow our nuclear, science and space engineering skills base," Paul Bate, chief executive of the UK Space Agency, said.

Bate added that Rolls-Royce's research "could lay the groundwork for powering continuous human presence on the Moon, while enhancing the wider UK space sector, creating jobs and generating further investment."

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https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2023/03/17/uk-backs-rolls-royce-project-to-build-a-nuclear-reactor-on-the-moon.html