Company BWX, located in Lynchburg, could possibly team up with NASA to launch its moon expedition. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, along with White House Director for the department and Office of Science and Technology, Mr. Kelvin Droegemeier made their way to Lynchburg to discuss the possibilities of partnership.
What happened in Lynchburg?
Mr. Jim Bridenstine and Mr. Kelvin Droegemeier made their way to BWX Technologies to further learn and understand the company's work in developing an amazing propulsion system that can be useful for NASA to send their astronauts to Mars.
The contribution of BWX
NASA is still in the process of planning for their expedition to Mars, which means that at this very early stage, NASA still needs help to answer certain questions as to how their astronauts would end up in space. BWX focuses on nuclear propulsion technology, which would be very beneficial for NASA's mission. BWX hopes to work with NASA to make their mission successful and even shorten the time of preparation.
The advantages which BWX can provide
With the technology from BWX, it is estimated that the time between now and the possible expedition could be shorter than their initial schedule. NASA is getting ready for Earth and Mars to be on the same side of the sun, and according to scientific calculations, this process might take about 26 months to achieve. Once Earth and Mars are on the same side, NASA has to be able to launch a space ship that can handle the harsh environments of space to be able to land on Mars.
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This mission seems quite dangerous, which is why NASA is gathering all the brilliant minds they can get to help them in their mission. BWX is one of those brilliant minds which is believed to benefit NASA in such an exponential way.
BWX statement on the matter
Mr. Rex Geveden, BWX CEO, released a statement saying that they are the only commercial entity with a license to handle extremely intricate and special nuclear materials to better prepare them for a nuclear surface power that will support a propulsion system for Mars. According to BWX, they are the only company that is most likely able to manufacture that.
NASA's administrator on why Mars is there target
It has always been rumored in fiction that life exists on Mars, which is why scientists are aiming to send humans there themselves to cover more ground than their machine rovers can do. Humans are also equipped with an intellect that cannot be programmed into a robot to guide their decisions to reach the best outcomes.
According to Geveden, BWX may be able to accomplish its propulsion technology in a few years to help NASA accomplish their Moon expedition. Currently, NASA is still working on sending its astronauts to the moon to better prepare themselves for a more rewarding expedition, the first-ever expedition to Mars. Lynchburg could be the place where it all starts.
