Brussels-based engineering company Tractebel has completed a study commissioned by the European Space Agency to create a road map for the development of nuclear power plants for space exploration.

In 2022, ESA launched the European Space Nuclear Power Plant Preliminary Assessment (RocketRoll) initiative as part of the agency’s Future Launch Vehicle Training Programme. The research was carried out by a consortium led by Tractebel and included contributions from OHB Czechspace, ArianeGroup, the French Alternative Energy and Atomic Energy Commission, Airbus and the Universities of Prague and Stuttgart.

While there are a variety of potential uses for nuclear propulsion in space, ESA’s RocketRoll initiative focuses on electric propulsion powered by a nuclear power source known as a nuclear electric motor. This solution overcomes the limitations of solar electric systems in deep space by combining the efficiency of electric propulsion with the ability to produce constant power.

The primary objectives of the RocketRoll study were to conduct an initial feasibility assessment, identify key technologies, and highlight potential economic and industrial hurdles. In late October, Tractebel announced that it had completed a study outlining a roadmap for nuclear demonstration launches in Europe by 2035.

“I am proud to lead such an important initiative for nuclear-electric propulsion, which will enable space exploration and logistics in Earth orbit and beyond, on a scale that neither chemical nor electric propulsion will ever achieve,” said Briek Spindler, the robot’s owner. space product Tractebel.

According to ESA, the long-term goal of the RocketRoll initiative is to more efficiently explore Mars, where solar energy is limited, by developing a nuclear-powered tugboat for long-duration missions.