In Brief NASA has signed an $18.8 million deal with BWXT Nuclear Energy, Inc. to develop nuclear thermal propulsion systems to help future space missions reach deeper into space than ever before. These propulsion systesm could cut the time needed to get to Mars by two months, as well as allow for a higher cargo capacity. Nuclear Thrust

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has just signedBWXT Nuclear Energy, Inc. of Lynchburg, Virginia, to a three-year contract worth $18.8 million, and itcould completely revolutionize the way we travel to other worlds.

The goal of the contractis to help the space agency develop nuclear thermal propulsion systems for future spacecraft. The Nuclear Thermal Propulsion (NTP) project is a part of NASAs Space Technology Mission Directorates (STMD) Game Changing Developments (GCD) initiative, a programdesigned to advance space technologies that may lead to entirely new approaches for the Agencys future space missions and provide solutions to significant national needs.

According to NASA, the potential of this project to revolutionize space travel lies in the ability to accelerate a large amount of propellant out of the back of a rocket at very high speeds, resulting in a highly efficient, high-thrust engine. Nuclear thermal rockets have double the propulsion efficiency of even the Space Shuttles main engine, and the new engines would also weigh less, allowing for a higher cargo capacity.

NASAhas been working on nuclear thermal propulsion as far back as 1955, but the surgeof recent interest in traveling to Mars from both the public sector and private organizations such asSpaceX is at least partially responsible for the agencysrenewed interest indeveloping this technology.

Sonny Mitchell, Nuclear Thermal Propulsion project manager at NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, said in a NASA press release, As we push out into the solar system, nuclear propulsion may offer the only truly viable technology option to extend human reach to the surface of Mars and to worlds beyond.

Not only would nuclear propulsion make this exploration possible, it would also significantly lessen the travel time required to reach our destinations. For example, a journey tothe Red Planet using current technology would take six months, but with NTP technology, that sametrip would be shortened by two months.

This certainly is an exciting time for space exploration as we are rapidly developing the technology needed to push humanity farther out into the final frontier than ever before.

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NASA's New Contract Could Change the Way We Approach Space Travel - Futurism