Plutonium Production

The U.S. Department of Energy announced on Thursday that it will resume its production of the radioactive fuel, plutonium-238, that powers NASA's deep space probe missions, a choice that came as a result of the National Research Council's announcement that the U.S. was running out of the fuel.

The Energy Department also requested a $30 million capital to start the plutonium-making process and pointed out that America's success of deep space missions depends on the ability to use radioisotope power systems.

As it has been nearly 20 years since the end of the Cold War and plutonium production, the NASA is estimated to run out of the radioactive metal by 2020. This means that there is only enough plutonium for a Mars Science Laboratory and an outer planet mission to Jupiter's moons.

Of course, the Obama administration is quite unsure with the public pressure and fear of terrorism, but I strongly believe that the government should go through with this because the rewards far outweigh the risks.

With the probability of terrorism low, NASA should be able to access a decent supply of plutonium. The deep space and Mars missions are helping us to understand space, which can be considered the ultimate resource ever to exist.

Original article: Los Angeles Times, May 8, 2009