NASA announced a collection of ideas for the construction of a nuclear power plant on the Moon by the end of the 2020s 
NASA and Idaho National Laboratory on Friday 19 November, they announced a collection of ideas for the construction of a nuclear power plant on the Moon, which could become an energy source independent of the Sun for a permanent habitable station, reports the Associated Press.
The Americans intend to build such a nuclear power plant on the Earth satellite by the end of the 2020s , the collection of ideas will be completed on February 19, 2022. The head of the project in the laboratory, Sebastian Corbiziero, emphasized that reliable and powerful energy on the lunar surface will be an important step in human space exploration.
According to NASA, a stable human presence on the moon will allow us to set the next goal – Mars. A nuclear reactor operating in the conditions of another planet can be reproduced, and in addition, it will lead to the development of technologies.
It is assumed that the reactor will be created on Earth, and then delivered to the Moon. The system will include a uranium-fueled reactor core, a system that converts heat to electricity, a heating control system and a distribution system. The power of the nuclear power plant must be at least 40 kilowatts for ten years.
The station must be switched on and off without human effort, work on board the lander and be adapted for transportation. For the latter condition, it is written that the reactor must fit into the parameters of a cylinder four meters high and six meters in diameter.
Earlier this week, the executive director of the Roscosmos state corporation for promising programs and science Alexander Bloshenko said that in 2022 the preliminary design of the Russian space station will begin. In his opinion, the project will take a year and a half.