NASA’s push for a new nuclear rocket engine is not just another upgrade to the hardware we strap to the bottom of spacecraft. It is an attempt to rewrite the basic rules of how far, how fast, and how safely humans and robots can travel beyond Earth.

At the core of NASA’s Artemis mission is Gateway, a lunar outpost that demands advanced power and propulsion. Aviation Week spoke with Chris Coker about how the company’s commercial spacecraft heritage is driving development of the Power and Propulsion Element (PPE), which will serve as Gateway’s electric power source and maneuvering system.

General Atomics and NASA have successfully tested a new type of nuclear thermal propulsion reactor fuel at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama. The new fuel could help power propulsion systems capable of taking humans to Mars in just 45 days.

NASA is leading an effort, working with the Department of Energy (DOE), to advance space nuclear technologies. The government team has selected three reactor design concept proposals for a nuclear thermal propulsion system. The reactor is a critical ...

NASA and electric propulsion developer Magnix are moving forward with plans to advance cleaner regional aviation, revealing on 22 August a De Havilland Canada Dash 7 turboprop that will receive hybrid-electric modifications. The ceremony to unveil the ...