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No. The in-space nuclear rocket test once targeted for 2026 never happened. DARPA’s 2026 goal was an early schedule for DRACO, a planned nuclear thermal propulsion demonstration; NASA and DARPA later described 2027 as the earliest expected test date, and DARPA ended the program in April 2025 before it flew.
What was DRACO supposed to demonstrate?
DRACO stands for Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations. It was a planned in-space test of nuclear thermal propulsion—not a nuclear-powered launch vehicle intended to lift off from Earth. In this type of propulsion, a fission reactor heats liquid propellant, which expands through a nozzle to produce thrust.
NASA and DARPA said the approach could offer shorter travel times and lower propellant demands for future deep-space missions, leaving more capacity for science equipment and communications. Those were expected benefits, not results demonstrated by a DRACO flight. DARPA said the concept could be two to five times as efficient as in-space chemical propulsion; that was a program-level comparison, not a measured DRACO performance result. DARPA’s May 2022 announcement describes the original goal and comparison.
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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →NASA led technical engine development through its Space Technology Mission Directorate, while DARPA managed contracting and overall integration, procurement, scheduling, security, safety, and assembly. In July 2023, NASA named Lockheed Martin as prime contractor for spacecraft design, integration, and testing; BWX Technologies was assigned reactor design and construction, and the U.S. Space Force was to support launch and launch-site operations. NASA’s January 2023 partnership announcement and July 2023 contractor announcement outline the plan.
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How did the test date change?
| Date | What was announced |
|---|---|
| May 2022 | DARPA sought proposals for later program phases and set an in-space demonstration goal in fiscal year 2026. DARPA’s announcement |
| January 2023 | NASA and DARPA announced their partnership and said a demonstration could occur as early as 2027. NASA’s announcement |
| July 2023 | NASA named the industry partners and described 2027 as the earliest expected in-space test date. NASA’s announcement |
| April 2025 | DARPA ended the project before the planned demonstration. NASA TechPort records a stop-work memo to Lockheed Martin on April 2 and a project end date of April 30. NASA TechPort’s DRACO record; GAO’s report |
Why did DARPA end the DRACO project?
NASA TechPort records the stop-work memo issued to Lockheed Martin on April 2, 2025, and lists April 30, 2025, as the project’s end date. The Government Accountability Office reports that NASA officials attributed the decision to changes in the commercial launch market, cost and demonstration challenges, and a shift in Department of Defense priorities. GAO also says a preliminary design review found the original plan could not be completed within its initial cost and schedule estimates. NASA TechPort and GAO document the closeout.
Did NASA test a nuclear rocket in 2026?
No in-space DRACO demonstration had taken place by 2026. NASA did report in January 2026 that it had completed a separate campaign of more than 100 cold-flow tests, conducted in 2025 on a 44-by-72-inch, flight-like reactor engineering development unit. The tests used no nuclear reaction: they examined how flowing fluid interacted with the structure. NASA said the work showed the design was not susceptible to destructive flow-induced oscillations, vibrations, or pressure waves. NASA’s January 2026 report describes that test campaign.
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Those results concern a non-nuclear test article and do not mean an in-space nuclear thermal engine was tested or that DRACO resumed. They also do not establish a new date for a future in-space nuclear thermal propulsion demonstration.
Is NASA still working on nuclear thermal propulsion?
NASA’s 2026 report on the separate cold-flow campaign shows that work on space nuclear propulsion continued beyond DRACO’s closeout. It does not, on its own, establish a replacement for DRACO or a schedule for an in-space nuclear demonstration. The distinction matters: a ground test of a non-nuclear engineering unit can inform design without demonstrating a working nuclear rocket in space.
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