Ilya Chekh, head of the Science Horizons scientific and technical group, announced the development of small nuclear reactors for deep space exploration, carrying out orbital missions, and supporting exploration operations in the Arctic region.
Chekh said: "One of the projects the group is currently working on is the development of modular nuclear reactors produced in the form of shipping containers. The mission is very ambitious, as it aims to create a qualitative leap in the field of small nuclear energy sources, so that each reactor produces about 170 megawatts of electricity, a capacity sufficient to power a small city, including a future city on the moon."
Chekh's remarks came during a session at the "Innoprom 2026" international forum.
He explained that a small team of physicists took on the design of this reactor, while the next stage is to expand the scope of development in preparation for serial production, with a plan to allow the manufacture of one reactor per day.
He noted that these small reactors could be used in missions to the moon, deep space exploration, the Arctic region, and remote deposits, including through cooperation with China and the United States on space exploration projects.
He added: "I am confident that we will be the first to build such reactors. There are already investors and partners who are interested and ready to invest in and develop this field. Historically, the nuclear industry remains one of the strongest industries in Russia, and nuclear power in space represents the stage we need to reach to get to deep space."
It is worth noting that the head of the Roscosmos corporation, Dmitry Bakanov, announced on April 1st the completion of the preliminary design of the nuclear power unit “Nuklon”, which is one of the components of the “Zeus” nuclear tug project dedicated to deep space exploration missions.
