Consideration of the Legislation, Codes, Standards and Regulations Required to Oversee Future Space Reactor Development

Abstract

One of the challenges of space travel, and especially extended space travel, is the provision of on-board power.  Efforts to address the issue has led to recent interest in the development of Nuclear Power Sources for use in space.  This paper discusses the specific challenges of licencing and regulating nuclear power for space, and considers the implications of licensing for a UK entity looking to enter into the nuclear-space industry.

The current international treaties and supporting guidance are reviewed and considered for both nuclear and space industries.  Extant national nuclear and space industry legislation is also reviewed.  This allows conclusions to be drawn and recommendations to be made to account for any shortfalls identified.  Further to this, specific foreign national legislation is also briefly considered in the context of a UK entity procuring a foreign launch.

International legislation is adequate to cover the nuclear-space industry, however, there are a number of shortfalls at a national level which need to be addressed to allow the industry to become viable.  These relate to the regulatory relationship between the UK Space Agency and the Office for Nuclear Regulation, as well as a lack of specific nuclear-space Safety Assessment Principles.  Due to the nature of international space law, and strict liability on the State, multiple licences may be required.  Therefore, the identified shortfalls are generally applicable to a UK entity regardless of the launch location.

Based on the findings, the paper makes enabling and implementation recommendations for the regulatory framework and an operator respectively.  The enabling recommendations require government bodies to provide detailed technical guidance and agency agreements; whereas the enabling recommendations aim to make ventures commercially viable, recommending operators define the scope of supply, logistical arrangements and relevant good practice as early as possible.