Kovalchuk pointed out the impossibility of exploring the Moon and Mars without nuclear power

There are no alternatives to the use of atomic energy in the exploration of the Moon and Mars. This was announced on April 17 by Mikhail Kovalchuk, President of the Kurchatov Institute National Research Center.

According to him, it is necessary to understand that the flight to Mars and back will take 500 days. He noted that in the event of any incident that a person in space cannot influence, a planetary base is needed. Kovalchuk stressed that the easiest way to create such a structure on the surface of the moon.

He noted that the task is divided into several segments, the first of which is the creation of nuclear energy in the form of a planetary electrical substation. In particular, he clarified that powerful megawatt-class nuclear power is needed, on-board.

"There is no alternative to nuclear energy in the exploration of planets, asteroids and deep space flights, because you cannot take a huge supply of fuel with you. There is no such amount of fuel that could be carried for 500 days back and forth," Kovalchuk said on the air of the Solovyov Live TV channel.

He called nuclear energy a key issue in the exploration of the Moon and stressed that in this sense, Russia has practically no competitors around the world.

The route will be built: Putin listed the key tasks of the new national space project

The President visited the Bauman Moscow State Technical University, where he assessed the new dormitories and told students about possible flights to Mars.

This morning, Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), called the possibility of a human flight to Mars becoming more and more realistic.

On April 16, Kovalchuk told Russian President Vladimir Putin about the technologies needed to conquer deep space. In a conversation with the president, he stressed the need to create a station on the moon. He clarified that Russia surpasses the United States in the technology of creating nuclear reactors powered by hydrogen.

Prior to that, on April 10, the Roscosmos State Corporation and the Kurchatov Institute Research Center signed an agreement on strategic cooperation in the implementation of the nuclear space program. The aim of the cooperation was to form scientific and technical foundations based on fundamental research and applied developments for the development of nuclear space technologies.