The Trump administration has ordered NASA to accelerate development of a nuclear fission reactor for the Moon, setting a deadline of 2030 as the United States seeks to secure a strategic foothold ahead of China and Russia. Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy said the agency must treat the project as "imperative" for both national security and long-term human exploration. In a directive issued this month, Duffy instructed the agency to solicit industry proposals within 60 days for a surface power system able to deliver at least 100 kilowatts of electricity—enough to run a small lunar base. NASA followed with a formal Request for Information on 14 August, asking companies to outline designs weighing under 15 tonnes, using a closed Brayton cycle for power conversion and capable of unhindered, maintenance-free operation for a decade. The move builds on NASA’s 2022 Fission Surface Power studies, when Lockheed Martin, Westinghouse and X-Energy each received US$5 million to mature 40-kilowatt concepts. The new mandate raises the power requirement and compresses the schedule, signalling Washington’s intent to field full-scale hardware on the lunar surface before the decade closes. U.S. officials argue that reliable nuclear power is essential for the Artemis programme, which plans crewed missions near the Moon’s south pole where two-week nights make solar energy unreliable. Chinese and Russian agencies have announced goals for automated lunar reactors by 2035 and China’s Chang’e-8 mission in 2029 is slated to test construction technologies for a polar base, intensifying the geopolitical race. Legal scholars note that the Outer Space Treaty permits peaceful nuclear power in space but the first nation to deploy a reactor could shape operational norms and de-facto safety zones around key resources such as polar ice. NASA says it will consult international partners and follow UN nuclear-safety guidelines as it refines the programme.