PS23405 - Space Nuclear Power Technology Roadmap

***** THIS IS AN AWARD NOTICE, NOT A CALL FOR COMPETITION *****

This procurement is being concluded following a competitive procurement exercise.

Brief Description of Requirement

The aim of this tender is to obtain specialist services to generate a supplementary document to the Space Exploration Technology Roadmap published by the UK Space Agency in July 2023. This document will be focussed on the technology theme Space Nuclear Power.

The UK has a strong nuclear sector, and the Agency is interested to find out how this can be applied to space exploration from small scale radioactive-isotope heating systems for space instrumentation to power systems that support human exploration on planetary surfaces. The Agency is also keen to understand the complimentary nature and/or overlap of these systems with other nuclear technology considerations that could be developed for a non-space purpose.

The Agency wishes to understand the UK capabilities in the wider international context, our potential contribution to powering this international endeavour to explore the Moon and Mars, understand the technology gaps and the options to overcome these gaps, to inform a potential Agency R&D programme in this area.