A nuclear micro-reactor is an extremely small and portable reactor. It is usually smaller than a Small Modular Reactor (SMR) and it has potential applications in spaceflight propulsion and terrestrial vehicles. Micro-reactors can produce power from 1-10 MW and can easily be fit in rovers, allowing indefinite operation
The prime advantage of micro-reactors is their ability to supply large amounts of energy and keep the spacecraft going for extended operational times. This enables
- Deeper space exploration
- Quicker course adjustments due to its light weight
- Elimination of heavy shielding. That’s not required because the reactor can be placed at a further distance from the payload or habitat modules without losing much efficiency
Rolls Royce is currently working on developing a micro-reactor for future space lunar missions. It has a total funding target of 6.2 million from the UK Space Agency. The schedule for completion is 18 months and first orbital tests will be conducted during the end of this decade. $6.2 million funding for a nuclear micro-reactor is a bit too small. It’s posited that the funding is most likely to only pay engineers to design and develop models-on-paper and blueprints of the reactor, and computer simulation work