If we want to send humans to Mars, and launch more science missions to the outer solar system, then we need the firepower to get there. One technology that could usher in this new era is nuclear-propelled rockets. This video traces the history of the nuclear spaceflight concept and looks at two complementary approaches being developed today: nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) and nuclear electric propulsion (NEP).
To discover more on this topic, take a look at the recent Physics World article ‘Nuclear-powered spacecraft: why dreams of atomic rockets are back on’.
