Even before its successful landing earlier this week, NASA's Mars Science Laboratory was already sending back important scientific data-about the radiation exposure that astronauts might face during a mission to the Red Planet.

An image sent by NASA's Curiosity rover shortly after landing

The nuclear-powered roving robotic laboratory Curiosity touched down early on August 6, and is beaming back images while undergoing system checks. The Curiosity landing has generated worldwide interest, including interest in its plutonium power source.

Early on Monday morning (1:31AM Eastern Daylight Time), after having traveled 352 million miles, NASA's robotic rover Curiosity is scheduled to touch down inside the Gale Crater on the surface of Mars. Soon after, it will begin looking for clues about possible early forms of Martian life.

It is certainly exciting times for NASA and the space nuclear community, as physical testing of nuclear thermal rockets (NTRs) and associated components has begun at NASA and the Department of Energy laboratories across the country. Nuclear thermal propulsion, as discussed in a previous article, is just one form of nuclear propulsion with extensive research behind it, and the only form with an extensive testing background. Near-term efforts by NASA will focus on preparation for ground and flight tests of a scalable Nuclear Thermal Rocket around 2020. However, the larger purpose of the recently restarted testing track is to develop an engine for manned travel to an asteroid, and eventually to our neighboring planet, Mars.

Part III: Nuclear Thermal Propulsion

Part II: Electric propulsion and fission power generation in space

Part I:  Space nuclear reactor safety

The reasons for using plutonium in space missions are often unclear to those outside the mission planning community. Observers may see or hear only that the space mission is nuclear related, and that the power source uses plutonium.

The Curiosity rover (Click to enlarge/Photo: NASA)

Shannon Bragg-Sitton of Idaho National Laboratory discusses nuclear applications for space missions, including the Mars Curiosity rover launched last Saturday, and the upcoming American Nuclear Society Nuclear and Emerging Technologies for Space (NETS) topical meeting, on March 21-23, in The Woodlands, Tex., held in conjunction with the March 19-23 Lunar and Planetary Sciences Conference. Please check the links above for more info.

The August issue of Nuclear News is available in hard copy and electronically for American Nuclear Society members (click here-log-in required).

This article was originally scheduled to appear on March 14.

From high in orbit above planet Earth... to the dusty surface of the moon... to the stunning cloud tops and moons of Jupiter... to the dazzling rings of Saturn... even to the darkness at the edge of interstellar space-nuclear technology has made possible incredible journeys to extraordinary destinations in our Solar System, and opened doors to some of the most profound discoveries of all time. Yet, the future of nuclear technology for space exploration promises even more remarkable journeys and more amazing discoveries.