Radioisotope power systems : an imperative for maintaining U.S. leadership in space exploration / Radioisotope Power Systems Committee, Space Studies Board, Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, National Research Council.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

National Research Council (U.S.). Radioisotope Power Systems Committee.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Radioisotopes in astronautics--United States.

Radioisotopes in astronautics.

Space vehicles--Auxiliary power supply.

Space vehicles.

Space vehicles--Isotopic power generators.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (69 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Washington, D.C. : National Academies Press, 2009.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Spacecraft require electrical energy. This energy must be available in the outer reaches of the solar system where sunlight is very faint. It must be available through lunar nights that last for 14 days, through long periods of dark and cold at the higher latitudes on Mars, and in high-radiation fields such as those around Jupiter. Radioisotope power systems (RPSs) are the only available power source that can operate unconstrained in these environments for the long periods of time needed to accomplish many missions, and plutonium-238 (238Pu) is the only practical isotope for fueling them. Plutonium-238 does not occur in nature. The committee does not believe that there is any additional 238Pu (or any operational 238Pu production facilities) available anywhere in the world.The total amount of 238Pu available for NASA is fixed, and essentially all of it is already dedicated to support several pending missions--the Mars Science Laboratory, Discovery 12, the Outer Planets Flagship 1 (OPF 1), and (perhaps) a small number of additional missions with a very small demand for 238Pu. If the status quo persists, the United States will not be able to provide RPSs for any subsequent missions.

Contents:

""Preface""; ""Acknowledgments""; ""Contents""; ""Tables, Figures, and Box""; ""Summary""; ""1 The Problem""; ""2 Background""; ""3 Plutonium-238 Supply""; ""4 RPS Research and Development""; ""List of Findings and Recommendations""; ""Appendixes""; ""Appendix A: Statement of Task""; ""Appendix B: Biographies of Committee Members and Staff""; ""Appendix C: NASA�s Projected Demand for 238Pu""; ""Appendix D: Comparison of 238Pu to Alternatives""; ""Appendix E: History of Space Nuclear Power Systems""; ""Appendix F: Briefings to the Committee""; ""Appendix G: Acronyms and Abbreviations""

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN:

9786612272448

9780309141765

0309141761

9781282272446

1282272446

9780309138581

0309138582

OCLC:

923280529