NASA Wants U.S. To Be The First Nation To Put Nuclear Reactor On The Moon

By Alexandra Skores, Jackie Wattles, CNN

(CNN) — Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy has directed the agency to fast-track plans to put a nuclear reactor on the moon.

Expediting work to place a reactor on the lunar surface to help power moon exploration efforts would keep the United States ahead of China and Russia, both of which have “announced on at least three occasions” a joint effort to develop such a project by the mid-2030s, according to a directive dated July 31 and obtained by CNN.

If another country were to achieve this feat first, it could declare a “keep-out zone” that would effectively hold the US back from its goal of establishing a presence on the lunar surface through NASA’s Artemis program. The agency’s Artemis III mission, currently planned for 2027, is expected to re