🚀 The first commercial nuclear satellite has been placed in orbit

Nuclear energy in space is no longer reserved solely for government agencies. A small commercial satellite, the BOHR, has just joined Earth orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on the Transporter-17 mission. This cubesat, designed by City Labs, marks a first: it carries an atomic energy source capable of operating without sunlight.


Unlike the thermal generators of the Voyager probes, which use heat from plutonium, City Labs' NanoTritium captures electrons emitted by the decay of tritium. A semiconductor converts these beta particles into electricity, providing continuous power without relying on the Sun. For now, the BOHR satellite does not actually draw power from this technology: it is testing its reliability in orbit, while its routine operations still depend on solar panels.


This demonstration mission paves the way for vehicles capable of exploring permanently shadowed areas, such as the craters at the Moon's south pole. NASA, through the Artemis program, is targeting this region to establish a sustainable base. Water ice present there could be extracted as a resource, but the absence of light for two weeks, or even permanently at the bottom of craters, requires an autonomous power source. City Labs sees tritium as a compact and safe solution to fuel future installations.

A major advantage of tritium is its low radioactivity: here we are not dealing with heavy atoms like uranium or plutonium, but a simple isotope of hydrogen, the lightest that exists. City Labs' systems are designed to be handled safely, transported, and integrated into standard commercial launchers. The company states that the technology is already certified for regulatory deployment. The BOHR satellite was authorized by the FAA, a first for a commercial nuclear vehicle.

This project, funded by a contract from the U.S. Department of Defense, could accelerate the adoption of nuclear energy in private and military space missions. City Labs CEO Peter Cabauy stated that this flight demonstrates that compact, approved nuclear systems are ready for routine commercial use. The future of space exploration may well rely on these mini nuclear power plants.