Call it a nuclear moonshot: The U.S. aims to deliver a reactor to the lunar surface and beat a push by China and Russia to do the same.

In August, NASA Acting Administrator Sean Duffy directed the agency to fast-track an effort to land a reactor on the moon by late 2029. The agency wants a 100-kilowatt system, about enough to power a small neighborhood—modest for Earth but unprecedented for space.

That gives the National Aeronautics and Space Administration a tight deadline to turn a wildly complex idea into something real. The agency expects to lean on U.S. industry to design a reactor, get it to the moon and operate it. But any companies that sign on will face steep engineering hurdles and financial risks.

Read more in the Wall Street Journal here.

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