American researchers aim for nuclear energy breakthrough with high-speed chemical rockets — here’s how it could change the future of spacecraft

Researchers from the University of Michigan have received $35 million from the U.S. Space Force to create a spacecraft fueled by a nuclear microreactor, Interesting Engineering reported.

The Space Force is a division of the United States military that was created in 2019. Once seen as a national joke, including a farce-style Netflix show, the Space Force is apparently now real enough to go around doling out $35 million for research projects.

The idea behind the new project, which would create a spacecraft powered by both chemical rockets and electric propulsion, is that it would allow the ship to maneuver without being constrained by a limited amount of fuel. People in this line of work refer to that concept as being able to “maneuver without regret.”

“When we listen to the demand signal from U.S. Space Command and the need to do dynamic space operations, the need to be able to maneuver without regret, that capability is now coming from us,” Brigadier General Kristin L. Panzenhagen, program executive officer for the Assured Access to Space directorate told Air & Space Forces Magazine.

“It shouldn’t be a surprise or anything — one of the principles of warfare is maneuver. So now here we are in the space domain with a need to do that.”

Space warfare! That sounds like a great idea with no potentially world-ending consequences — except, of course, the possibility of “entombing the Earth in orbital debris,” followed by “mutually assured destruction,” according to a 2012 paper published in Air & Space Law.

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That said, it is certainly possible that the U.S. may one day wage space war, in which case it would want capable ships. Whether or not preparing for that possibility is worth $35 million in 2024 is up for debate, and the resources and fuel for testing surely aren’t great for the atmosphere, but if the Space Force is to exist, this gives it something tangible to do.

And at least the plans sound designed to be fuel-efficient, like a hybrid for outer space. Except instead of a Space Prius, it’s more like an EV that has a red button on the gear shift knob that ignites a nuclear reaction to get a burst of speed. As Interesting Engineering put it, “Electric propulsion, while fuel-efficient, is slower and bulkier, often powered by solar panels … [so] in situations where rapid maneuvers are required, such as avoiding a collision, the speed provided by chemical propulsion might be essential.”

It is not clear to what degree, if at all, the various collateral risks of space warfare are of concern to the Space Force, which sounds excited about its new $35 million toy. One can only hope responsible uses of its toys are on the list of priorities, but it seems the Space Force will “maneuver without regret” — it’s right there in the name of the concept.

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