US EditionA Nuclear Reactor on the Moon? U.S. Races to Deploy Nuclear Power in Space Amid China-Russia Push
UNITED STATES, AUG 7 – NASA's directive aims to deploy nuclear reactors by 2029 to secure U.S. space dominance amid competition with China and Russia, requiring at least 100 kilowatts for Mars surface operations.
- On August 7, 2025, NASA's interim administrator Sean Duffy declared the U.S. must secure a lunar base by 2030 powered by a nuclear reactor, according to a recent directive.
- Since July 31, the internal NASA directive signed on July 31 highlights competition with China and Russia, which have announced at least three joint efforts to place a reactor on the Moon by the mid-2030s, according to the directive.
- According to the directive, systems will be delivered by a heavy-class lander capable of transporting up to 15 metric tons, aiming for deployment within five years at the lunar South Pole.
- In response, the directive calls for a U.S. nuclear power czar to select commercial proposals within six months, galvanizing NASA, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Energy.
- Critics warn that China and Russia’s reactor efforts could establish keep-out zones that undermine U.S. access to the lunar south pole, according to Dr. Simeon Barber, planetary scientist at the Open University.
20 Articles
20 Articles
NASA plans to build a nuclear reactor on the Moon – a space lawyer explains why, and what the law has to say
The stark landscape of the Moon as viewed by the Apollo 12 astronauts on their return to Earth. NASA/The Planetary SocietyThe first space race was about flags and footprints. Now, decades later, landing on the Moon is old news. The new race is to build there, and doing so hinges on power. In April 2025, China reportedly unveiled plans to build a nuclear power plant on the Moon by 2035. This plant would support its planned international lunar res…
Why does the US want to put nuclear reactors on the moon?
If you want to know where the next nuclear reactor is being built, you may have to look up at the stars. Transportation Secretary and interim NASA Administrator Sean Duffy is moving forward with a plan to construct nuclear reactors on the moon in the hopes of expanding American influence in outer space. But this may be easier said than done, thanks to the government itself, as NASA is facing significant budget cuts courtesy of the Trump administ…
NASA Prepares For A Nuclear Reactor On The Moon
NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) has unveiled its plan to put a nuclear reactor on the moon. The agency’s acting administrator, Sean Duffy, recently stated that a plan is in place to build a nuclear reactor on the moon by 2030 to support a permanent human presence. United States Secretary of Transportation and interim NASA Administrator Sean Duffy declared on Thursday that the United States must secure a strategic lunar base …
A Nuclear Reactor on the Moon? U.S. Races to Deploy Nuclear Power in Space Amid China-Russia Push
(Credit: NASA) Welcome to this installment of The Intelligence Brief… This week, a newly surfaced NASA directive reveals a heightened effort by the United States to deploy nuclear reactors on the Moon and Mars, with the first launch targeted for late 2029, as part of a broader push to maintain strategic dominance in space. In our analysis, we’ll be examining 1) how the directive calls for the appointment of a nuclear power czar to select commerc…
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