NASA intends to move forward with their plans of setting a permanent human base on the Moon, and is aiming for having a nuclear reactor by 2030. That's according to leaked reports and anonymous sources from Politico, with one NASA senior official taking about "winning the second space race". Later, interim NASA administrator Sean Duffy confirmed it on press release.
The plan is to have a 100 kilowatt nuclear reactor, which is the amount a 186 square meters house use every three days. They know that China and Russia also have similar plans to reach the Moon and even Mars, so the US want to be the first to claim the best parts of the satellite. The first country to have a reactor on the Moon "could declare a keep-out zone which would significantly inhibit the United States", Duffy said.
NASA also explained how nuclear energy is the only viable power source for settlements in the Moon, where lunar days last 15 days, meaning the surface is in darkness every two weeks.
"There's a certain part of the Moon that everyone knows is the best. We have ice there, we have sunlight there, and we want to get there first and claim it for the United States" Duffy said.
Ambitious plans, although earlier this year Donald Trump slashed NASA's budget for 2026 by 24%.
It was one of the first appearances by Duffy as NASA administrator, a role he took in July 2025. He is also the Transportation Secretary designated by Donald Trump, and some have criticised that the former Fox news reporter shares his time between those two roles. Duffy, however, will only be a limited time at NASA, while Trump looks for a permanent replacement. He rejected his prior candidate, Jared Isaacman, due to his close relationship with Space-X founder Elon Musk.