Russia intends to establish a nuclear power plant on the moon

Russia intends to establish a nuclear power station on the moon during the next decade to provide energy for its space program on the moon and support a joint Russian-Chinese research station, amid the major powers’ race to explore the planet.

Since Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human in space in 1961, Russia has prided itself on its position as a leading power in space exploration, but in the past few decades it has fallen significantly behind the United States and China.

Russia’s ambitions suffered a major setback in August 2023 when the unmanned Luna-25 spacecraft collided with the surface of the moon while trying to land on it, at a time when Elon Musk revolutionized spacecraft launches, which was once an area in which Russia excelled.

The Russian Space Agency (Roscosmos) said in a statement that it plans to build a power station on the moon by 2036, and has signed a contract with the Lavochkin Association space company to do so.

She noted that among the participants were the state nuclear company Rosatom and the Kurchatov Institute, the largest nuclear research institute in Russia.

Roscosmos said that the purpose of the station is to supply energy to Russia’s lunar program, including rovers, the observatory and the infrastructure of the joint Russian-Chinese international lunar research station.

She added: “The project is an important step towards establishing a permanent scientific station on the Moon and moving from individual missions to a long-term program for exploring the Moon.”

Russia is not unique in these plans. In August, NASA announced its intention to place a nuclear reactor on the moon by the first quarter of fiscal year 2030.

US Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said in August, in response to a question about these plans, “We are in a race to reach the moon. We are racing with China to reach the moon. To establish a base on its surface, we need energy.”

Research conducted by Boeing indicates the presence of rare earth metals on the surface of the moon, which are used in smartphones, computers, and advanced technologies, including scandium, yttrium, and 15 lanthanide elements.