NASA's Future Crewed , Mission to Mars Depends on , Developing Nuclear Thermal Propulsion.<br />Ars Technica reports that the United States <br />announced its intention to develop a flyable nuclear <br />thermal propulsion system nearly three years ago.<br />The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's <br />(DARPA) aim was to develop more responsive controls <br />of spacecraft in Earth orbit, lunar orbit and in between. .<br />The project is part of an effort to give the U.S. <br />military greater operational freedom in space. .<br />The operation has been dubbed <br />the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar <br />Operations, or DRACO project for short.<br />Ars Technica reports that the program <br />includes building both a nuclear fission <br />reactor and a spacecraft to fly it.<br />In 2021, General Atomics was <br />awarded $22 million by DARPA <br />to work on developing the reactor.<br />Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin and Blue Origin <br />were awarded an additional $5.4 million to <br />develop the project's spacecraft system. .<br />Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin and Blue Origin <br />were awarded an additional $5.4 million to <br />develop the project's spacecraft system. .<br />According to a 2019 report, NASA's only hope <br />for putting humans on Mars in the near future <br />is by developing nuclear propulsion.<br />Ars Technica reports that nuclear thermal <br />propulsion requires significantly less fuel <br />than other means of chemical propulsion.<br />NASA will work with our long-term <br />partner, DARPA, to develop and <br />demonstrate advanced nuclear <br />thermal propulsion technology <br />as soon as 2027, Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator, via Ars Technica.<br />With the help of this new technology, astronauts could journey to and from deep space faster than ever, a major capability to prepare for crewed missions to Mars, Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator, via Ars Technica.<br />With the help of this new technology, astronauts could journey to and from deep space faster than ever, a major capability to prepare for crewed missions to Mars, Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator, via Ars Technica
