NASA’s Glenn Research Center issued a draft request for proposals for the SPARC multiple-award indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract on 2026-08-31 to develop, test, and sustain space nuclear systems for lunar missions. The draft scope covers design, development, analysis, fabrication, assembly, verification, validation, testing, evaluation, certification, delivery, and sustaining operations, with NASA planning full and open competition subject to Small Business Administration approval. NASA expects an industry day around 2026-09-14, final RFP release on or about 2026-11-15, proposals roughly 30 days later, and an ordering period running from 2027-04-15 through 2031-12-31.
The primary mission target is Lunar Reactor-1, or LR-1, described as NASA’s first operational lunar surface fission reactor and a precursor to future power generation on the Moon and Mars. For the Ark, this matters because surface nuclear power removes dependence on fragile solar-only architectures, extends operations through lunar night and polar shadow, and enables continuous mining, life support, communications, thermal control, and manufacturing. The procurement structure suggests NASA is not just studying concepts; it is industrializing the supply chain for flight-qualified nuclear surface power.
Ark teams should track the SPARC final solicitation, award structure, and any LR-1 technical requirements that emerge after industry feedback. Priority research areas are reactor output class, payload mass limits, heat rejection, autonomy, shielding, maintainability, launch authorization path, and interfaces with lunar surface infrastructure. The Ark should also map which vendors, national labs, and subsystem integrators enter the program, because those partnerships will likely define the first practical lunar power grid and the long-term architecture for off-Earth civilization support.