Antares Selected for $161M Strategic Breakthrough Award to Demonstrate Space Reactor
Antares, building microreactors for critical missions, led by Jordan Bramble and the team, has been selected by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Space Acquisition and Integration for a Strategic Breakthrough award to advance nuclear power for space. It marks the largest current Department of War award in space nuclear power.
“Space has been core to the Antares thesis since the company was founded,” said Jordan Bramble, CEO and co-founder of Antares. “This partnership with the Space Force turns that long-held vision into a codified space mission. Fission will unlock strategic capabilities that are impossible today.”
Through the program, Antares will conduct a ground demonstration of the R1-S nuclear system, integrate it with a spacecraft for flight certification, and prepare for launch. The company will also test Mark-1, its electricity-producing reactor, as an operational ground-to-space power asset in 2027.
Space nuclear power has been central to Antares’ strategy from the start. The technology is designed to give spacecraft greater maneuverability while providing continuous, high-power energy for applications including advanced computing, directed-energy systems and electromagnetic warfare.
On June 4, 2026, Antares’ Mark-0 microreactor achieved initial criticality at Idaho National Laboratory under DOE authorization, making the company the first private developer to reach criticality under the DOE Reactor Pilot Program. Mark-1 is scheduled to operate for more than six months in 2027 using Antares’ nitrogen closed Brayton cycle power-conversion system.
The award supports U.S. space-nuclear goals calling for nuclear reactor launches as early as 2028 and deployment on the lunar surface by 2030.
𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐇𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐔𝐬: 𝐌𝐞𝐧𝐥𝐨 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭 helps technology companies hire exceptional remote talent from India. Build your team with carefully curated engineers, product leaders, designers, GTM professionals, and more. Learn More At: https://www.menlotimes.com/menlo-talent
