Nuclear thermal propulsion is key to keeping peace in space

Payne Institute Fellow Alex Gilbert writes about how the strategic mandate for nuclear propulsion of US satellites and space-based assets to evade the growing threat from Russia and China’s anti-satellite weapons. The report’s analysis and conclusions are sound and timely, but nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) has broader applicability in space, including commercial and “soft power” uses. The US should pursue a concerted, sustained whole-of-government approach to it. Beyond achieving a first-mover advantage, this will allow the US to develop norms and solidify rules of the road espoused by the UN last fall, rules aimed at preventing war in the heavens.  February 14, 2022.