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US defense agency backs autonomously-controlled nuclear reactors for space missions

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US defense agency backs autonomously-controlled nuclear reactors for space missions

The United States has taken a major step to advance autonomous reactor operation for national security missions.

For this, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded Space Nuclear Power Corporation (SpaceNukes) an Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) under the Fast Capacitance (Fat Cat) program.

The contract supports development and ground testing of advanced reactor control technologies that extend the demonstrated capability of American nuclear power.


The award extends a continuous line of nuclear power development and builds directly on SpaceNukes’ successful nuclear power demonstration heritage.

“This award recognizes the maturity and continuity of the team that designed, built, and tested KRUSTY in 2018,” said Patrick McClure, COO of SpaceNukes.

In 2018, key members of the SpaceNukes team, while employed by Los Alamos National Laboratory and NASA, performed the foundational Kilopower Reactor Using Stirling Technology (KRUSTY) work — conducting the only full-power ground test of a new American space reactor in five decades.

“We are proud to work alongside Dr. Dodson and Los Alamos National Laboratory to deliver the next demonstrated step in American nuclear power.”

Under the current agreement, SpaceNukes and Los Alamos National Laboratory will design, build, and conduct a follow-on nuclear ground test of a Kilopower reactor incorporating active control rod operation—an advancement beyond the passively controlled architecture demonstrated in the 2018 KRUSTY test. The Fat Cat program seeks to advance autonomous reactor operation for national security missions, according to a press release.

The phased program structure includes design, procurement, and integration gates leading to the ground demonstration, producing both nuclear-tested hardware and the engineering basis for autonomous, actively-controlled reactor operation.


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