Program Summary
The space domain is essential to modern commerce, scientific discovery, and national defense. Moving larger payloads into farther locations in cislunar space – the volume of space between the Earth and the Moon – will require a leap-ahead in propulsion technology.
The goal of the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations (DRACO) program is to demonstrate a nuclear thermal rocket (NTR) in orbit. NTRs use a nuclear reactor to heat propellant to extreme temperatures before exhausting the hot propellant through a nozzle to produce thrust. Compared to conventional space propulsion technologies, NTRs offers a high thrust-to-weight ratio around 10,000 times greater than electric propulsion and two-to-five times greater specific impulse (i.e. propellant efficiency) than in-space chemical propulsion.
Phase 1 of the DRACO program involved two tracks. Track A conducted a baseline design of an NTR reactor. Track B developed an operational system concept to meet operational mission objectives and a demonstration system design that is traceable to the operational system but focuses on demonstrating the propulsion subsystem.
Phase 2 and Phase 3 of the DRACO program will carry a single performer forward to the flight demonstration, which is envisioned to take place by FY27. This performer will be responsible for building the NTR and its demonstration system stage. Phase 2 will involve a cold flow test of the rocket engine without nuclear fuel. Phase 3 will involve assembly of the fueled NTR with the stage, environmental testing, and launch into space to conduct experiments on the NTR and its reactor.