Vladimir Putin has ordered his state space agency Roscosmos and Rosatom to begin investing in a space nuclear energy program by June 15. Speculation about Russian nuclear weapons in space recently flared up.
Now Putin is announcing investments in space nuclear power. China is probably on board. It seems that a new – nuclear – space race is in full swing.. NASA and The US Department of Energy announced in June 2022 that it had concluded contracts with three companies to develop compact nuclear reactors for the moon. The first US reactor is scheduled to be launched into space in the early 2030s and will supply at least one lunar base with energy as part of the Artemis program. The United Kingdom is now cooperating with Rolls Royce to build such a lunar reactor and China was already considering nuclear power on the moon in 2022 without Russia. The reactor would probably supply the “International Lunar Research Station” with energy. This is also a Chinese-Russian joint project that should be completed by 2050.