Politico reports, “Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy will announce expedited plans this week to build a nuclear reactor on the moon, the first major action by the former Fox News host as the interim NASA administrator. NASA has discussed building a reactor on the lunar surface, but this would set a more definitive timeline and come just as the agency faces a massive budget cut. The move also underscores how Duffy wants to play a role in NASA policymaking.”
Full Story (Politico)
Tag: to build
Greek Entrepreneur Hopes to Build Giant Net to Catch Incoming Cargo on the Moon
SPACE reports, “Greece-based entrepreneur has a unique idea for moon-bound deliveries: using a giant net to catch packages launched from lunar orbit. Although there are still many hurdles to clear, the system would address many of the key challenges for moon-bound deliveries and could aid in the future mining of lunar resources. Right now, lunar landers are costly, especially when they fail. Rather than using landers for deliveries to the moon’s surface, Charis Kosmas has developed a concept called the Momentum Absorption Catcher for Express Deliveries on Non-Atmospheric Somata (MACEDONAS).”
Full Story (SPACE)
Innovators Invited to Compete to Build Best Autonomous Emergency Response Aircraft
Flying Magazine reports, “Calling all students, engineers, businesses, and other innovators. Time is running out to join a competition that will award $2 million in prizes to whoever can build the best autonomous emergency response aircraft. December 11 is the submission deadline for Stage 1 of GoAERO—a three-year contest backed by NASA, Boeing, RTX, and other key aviation stakeholders seeking to aid the estimated 4.5 million Americans living in ‘ambulance deserts,’ who may need to wait longer than 25 minutes for emergency services to arrive. The aircraft created by competitors could rescue people in danger and respond to disasters, medical emergencies, or humanitarian crises.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)
Aurora Flight Sciences to Build Spaceplane Launch Platform Aircraft for Virgin Galactic
Space News reports that Virgin Galactic announced Wednesday it signed an agreement with Aurora Flight Sciences “to build two new aircraft that will be used as launch platforms for its next-generation suborbital spaceplanes.” The carrier aircraft “will succeed the original WhiteKnightTwo aircraft.” Aurora “will manufacture components of the aircraft at its factories in Columbus, Mississippi, and Bridgeport, West Virginia. Final assembly of the planes will take place at Virgin’s production facility in Mojave, California.” Virgin Galactic CEO Michael Colglazier said, “Our next-generation motherships are integral to scaling our operations. They will be faster to produce, easier to maintain and will allow us to fly substantially more missions each year.”
Full Story (Space News)