Plutonium-238's high heat-production rate and 89-year half-life makes it a good power source for long space missions (Image: US Department of Energy)From New Scientist:
NASA is feeling the pinch in its plutonium supplies.
Many spacecraft are powered by the radioactive decay of plutonium-238, but the US no longer produces the material. Instead, NASA relies on its shrinking stockpile, topped up with purchases from Russia.
Previous estimates suggested the decline would not affect solar-system exploration until after 2020, but NASA is already tightening its belt. Candidates for NASA's next "New Frontiers" mission, which aims to launch an exploratory spacecraft by 2018, will not be allowed to rely on plutonium for power, effectively limiting the candidate probes to solar power only.
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1 comment:
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