Though likely more expensive, nuclear-based propulsion systems are the only way to make getting to Mars feasible, according to a Lockheed report from 2022.

The best candidate is the Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) system, a type of nuclear rocket. According to GA-EMS president Scott Forney, the company's latest nuclear fuel tests show that their ...

NASA and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) were launching a nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) powered by solid uranium by 2027 called the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar ...

In January 2023, NASA and DARPA announced a partnership to test a nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) engine in space as part of the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) program. The ...

Nuclear thermal propulsion has long been a goal of spaceflight advocates, dating back to the days of German rocket scientist Wernher von Braun and NASA's Project NERVA.

Nuclear thermal propulsion technology could be used for future NASA crewed missions to Mars. (Image credit: DARPA) NASA wants to design and demonstrate a working nuclear thermal rocket by 2027.

The company says the nuclear thermal propulsion system is designed to be extremely safe and reliable, using High Assay Low Enriched Uranium (HALEU) fuel to rapidly heat a super-cold gas, ...

NASA and DARPA have chosen aerospace and defense company Lockheed Martin to develop a spacecraft with a nuclear thermal rocket engine. Announced in January, the partnership — also including BWX ...

July 27, 2023 The World’s First Nuclear-Powered Spaceship Will Take Off by 2027 More efficient than conventional rocket engines, the Draco project is designed for travel to Mars as well as ...

Going faster would require a new propulsion method. The best candidate is the Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) system, a type of nuclear rocket.