When NASA astronauts return to the moon and begin establishing a lunar outpost, they will need power sources on the lunar surface. Engineers at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland have been exploring the possibility of nuclear fission to provide the necessary power and have taken initial steps toward a non-nuclear system-level technology demonstration of this type of power system.
A potential fission surface power system on the moon would generate a steady 40 kilowatts of electric power, enough for about eight houses on Earth. Fission surface power systems depend on splitting uranium atoms in a reactor to generate heat that is converted into electric power. They offer many potential advantages over other power sources, including the ability to produce large amounts of power in harsh environments, like the surfaces of the moon and Mars, without depending on sunlight. The primary components of fission surface power systems are a heat source, power conversion, heat rejection and power conditioning and distribution.
I hope this pans out because then they can put it on deep space probes which are stuck in the meantime since we're out of Pu-238.
