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Space
Space
Science
Mike Wall

NASA, DARPA to launch nuclear rocket to orbit by early 2026

DARPA NASA Earth Mars BWX Technologies Hydrogen Lockheed United States
illustration of a nuclear-powered spacecraft in orbit, with earth in the background

NASA and the U.S. military plan to launch a nuclear-powered spacecraft to Earth orbit in late 2025 or early 2026.

The project, known as DRACO ("Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations"), aims to give an in-space test to nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP), potentially revolutionary tech that could help humanity set up shop on Mars and other distant worlds.

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