Russia plans a nuclear power plant on the moon within a decade
By Guy Faulconbridge
MOSCOW, Dec 24 (Reuters) – Russia plans to build a nuclear power plant on the Moon within the next decade to support its lunar space program and a Russia-China joint research station, as major powers seek to explore the world’s only natural satellite.
Since Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space in 1961, Russia has prided itself as a leading power in space exploration, but in recent years it has lagged behind the United States and, increasingly, “China.”
Russia’s ambitions suffered a major blow in August 2023 when the unmanned Luna-25 mission crashed into the moon’s surface while attempting to land, revolutionizing the launch of spacecraft by Elon Musk, which was once exclusive to Russia.
NUCLEAR REACTOR ON THE MOON?
Russia’s state space company Roscosmos said in a statement that it plans to establish a Lunar power plant by 2036 and has signed a contract with the Lavochkin Association aviation company for this.
Roscosmos did not explicitly say that the facility would be nuclear, but it was stated that participants included Russian state nuclear company Rosatom and Russia’s leading nuclear research institute, the Kurchatov Institute.
Roscosmos said the facility’s purpose is to power Russia’s lunar program, including rovers, an observatory and infrastructure for the joint Russia-China International Lunar Research Station.
“The project is an important step towards the creation of a permanently functioning scientific lunar station and the transition from one-off missions to a long-term lunar exploration program,” Roscosmos said. he said.
Dmitry Bakanov, head of Roscosmos, said in June that one of the company’s goals was to build a nuclear power plant on the moon and explore Venus, known as Earth’s “sister” planet.
Located 384,400 km (238,855 miles) from our planet, the Moon softens the Earth’s wobble on its axis, providing a more stable climate. It also causes tides in the world’s oceans.
USA IS PLANNING A REACTOR ON THE MOON TOO
Russia is not the only one with such plans. In August, NASA announced its intention to place a nuclear reactor on the moon by the first quarter of fiscal 2030.
“We’re in a race to the moon, we’re in a race to the moon with China. We need the energy to have a base on the moon,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in August when asked about the plans.
He added that the United States is currently behind in the race to reach the moon. He said that energy is necessary to sustain life on the Moon and from there to reach Mars.
International rules prohibit the placing of nuclear weapons in space, but there is no ban on placing nuclear energy sources in space, provided that certain rules are followed.
Some space analysts predict a lunar gold rush: NASA says there are estimates of one million tonnes of Helium-3, a rare helium isotope on Earth, on the moon.
Rare earth metals such as scandium, yttrium and 15 lanthanides, which are used in smartphones, computers and advanced technologies, are also present on the moon, according to Boeing’s research.
(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle and Alex Richardson)
