The moon will be there. We are heading back after a long time in which no one was set foot on the lunar surface. And very soon.
We haven't seen a human in person on the Moon since 1972, but that is about to change as part of the NASA-led Artemis program.
There's no power grid on the Moon, so astronauts will need power and plenty of it.
For years, NASA has viewed nuclear fission as the most practical power option for future colonies, and now the space agency is taking the next step in making a nuclear reactor on the Moon a reality.
Jim Reuter, associate administrator for NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate, saystiful energy will be key to future space exploration.
There is a conceptual surface power system on Mars. The NASA.
NASA has been researching the possibilities for lunar nuclear fission for years, and is now working with the US Department of Energy on a new project.
The two organizations are calling for American industry partners to submit design concepts for nuclear power systems that could run on the lunar surface and be ready to launch and demonstrate their potential within the decade.
NASA says that a small, lightweight fission system can provide up to 10 kilowatts of electrical power, which would be sufficient to satisfy the electricity demands of several average households.
In the lunar operations, power usage would be different to what people on Earth use, for example, running life support systems, charging lunar rovers, and helping scientists conduct experiments.
NASA says that future fission systems will need to produce at least 40 kilowatts of energy, which could power 30 households for up to 10 years.
Artemis's endeavors are bringing us closer to colonization of Mars, because of the expected amount of energy needed to sustain a sustained lunar presence and also one day to enable exploration and even colonization of Mars.
A picture of a nuclear powered vehicle. The NASA.
Today's research into lunar fission power systems could help inform proposed nuclear propulsion systems that may one day enable astronauts to journey to the red planet at faster speeds.
We are still years away from seeing a lunar reactor actually work on the Moon, so one step at a time. NASA and the DOE have had some success with Kilopower prototypes, but nobody has yet had a chance to test it on the Moon.
The most promising design proposals will be selected by NASA and the DOE and will be used to develop concepts for a year.
The design and build of one final flight-qualified fission power system, which will be launched to the Moon on a demonstration mission, will be guided by what researchers learn after those projects are assessed.
The Moon should have its own power grid at long last, and the base of operations in space will be on a new level.
The feedback and enthusiasm we continue to see for space nuclear power systems has been very exciting, and understandably so, says senior engineer Sebastian Corbisiero, the Fission Surface Power Project lead at the DOE's Idaho National Laboratory.
It is within our grasp to provide a reliable, high-power system on the Moon.
