3 ms·

I realize this isn't the top issue being discussed right now, but I've also heard that the isotopes preferred for RTG's are in very short supply these days - I

I realize this isn't the top issue being discussed right now, but I've also heard that the isotopes preferred for RTG's are in very short supply these days - I believe they were byproducts of the old nuclear weapons programs.

dalke 12y ago
From 2013, "U.S. To Restart Plutonium Production for Deep Space Exploration" - http://www.universetoday.com/100875/u-s-to-restart-plutonium-production-for-deep-space-exploration/ http://www.universetoday.com/100875/u-s-to-restart-plutonium... . "The problem is, plutonium production in the U.S. ceased in 1988 with the end of the Cold War. ... The plutonium that currently powers Curiosity across the surface of Mars was bought from the Russians, and that source ended in 2010. New Horizons is equipped with a spare MMRTG that was built for Cassini, which was launched in 1999. ... The current production run of Pu-238 will be carried out at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) using its High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR)."