Rolls Royce

Rolls-Royce gave us a glimpse of the nuclear future of next-generation spacecraft and Moon bases when it unveiled a mock-up of its Space Micro-Reactor Concept Model at the UK Space Conference in Belfast, which ran between November 21 to 31, 2023.

Under a UK Space Agency contract, Bangor University in Wales is developing a new poppy-seed-sized nuclear fuel for the Rolls-Royce micro reactors that will power future crewed lunar outposts by 2030.

The UK Space Agency has awarded Rolls-Royce a £2.9-million (US$3.5-million) contract to develop a demonstrator modular nuclear reactor that could be installed on the Moon by 2029 to support permanent human outposts on the lunar surface.

Rolls-Royce and the UK Space Agency study the potential for nuclear energy to be used in space exploration. The first contract between the two, the project will examine how nuclear energy can both power spacecraft and be used for deep-space propulsion.

Rolls-Royce has opened a new outdoor facility in the US for testing and prototyping jet engines - including the Trent engines to be used for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A380.