NASA renews its interest in nuclear-powered propulsion

Nature : Small fission reactors may be used to power future NASA manned space missions. With twice the efficiency of chemical rockets, the reactors could send astronauts farther into space and at a much higher rate of speed, writes Eric Hand for Nature. Although researchers have been exploring the technology for years, funding has been problematic—until now. In a National Research Council report released 1 February, nuclear power and propulsion were ranked high on a list of the most important areas of technology development. And public opinion regarding nuclear power may be changing. Whereas the 1997 launch of Cassini–Huygens, with a radioisotope generator, was protested by antinuclear activists, the November 2011 launch of the Mars Science Laboratory, which also has a radioisotope generator, did not generate the same level of public concern.