NERVA-Derived Concept for a Bimodal Nuclear Thermal Rocket

Abstract

The Nuclear Thermal Rocket is an enabling technology for human exploration missions. The “bimodal” NTR (BNTR) provides a novel approach to meeting both propulsion and power requirements of future manned and robotic missions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate tie‐tube cooling configurations, NTR performance, Brayton cycle performance, and LOX‐Augmented NTR (LANTR) feasibility to arrive at a point of departure BNTR configuration for subsequent system definition.