Ex-SpaceX Engineers Are Developing A Mini Nuclear Reactor
The tech that will power Mars might be better off down on Earth.
SpaceX has built some insane machines over the years, but apparently, for some of the engineers at SpaceX, revolutionising space isn’t enough. They have broken away and formed a new startup, Radiant. They promise to revolutionise portable, sustainable energy with revolutionary space-grade micro nuclear reactors. Is this an empty promise? Or a groundbreaking revolution?
Their reactor uses patent-pending technology to deliver some astonishing figures. It will be able to fit inside a shipping container, produce 1 megawatt of power (enough to power 1,000 US homes), needs no external water supply as it is helium-cooled, uses meltdown proof nuclear fuel, can be operated remotely and can last for eight years without refuelling or maintenance. So it is easy to see how Radiant has already raised $1.2 million from private investment to develop this reactor!
Sadly, as their technology is patent-pending, there is very little technical data on this reactor. But, we can speculate. This reactor is likely to be a helium-cooled fast reactor using Trios particle fuel, comprised of either plutonium or thorium, as this technology already exists and can deliver on Radiants claims. These technologies may sound…
