The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is seeking proposals for nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) engines.
The proposals are for the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) program, covering the design, development, fabrication, and assembly of the engines. The program's goal is to execute a flight demonstration using nuclear thermal propulsion in space in the fiscal year 2026.
Popular Now: Rockstar's next game after GTA 6 is already confirmed, but it isn't Red Dead Redemption 3Phase 1 of the program focused on preliminary designs for the rocket engine reactor and a conceptual in-orbit demonstration system, and proposals are being sought for Phases 2 and 3. Phase 2 will see the completion of designs for a demonstration system and the validation of an NTR flight engine, while Phase 3 will see the demonstration system built to handle a full-power, on-orbit flight test and the execution of that test.
"The United States employs maneuver to maintain advantages in the land, sea, and air domains. However, maneuver is more challenging in space due to propulsion system limitations. To maintain technological superiority in space, the United States requires leap-ahead propulsion technology that the DRACO program will provide," said Major Nathan Greiner, program manager in DARPA's Tactical Technology Office.
Adam's Top 3 Recommended Articles:
Read more: New DARPA hypersonic missile prototype test flew 5x the speed of sound
Read more: Takers of the first-ever black hole photo have a massive announcement
Read more: New 'impossible' discovery could make computers 400 times faster
