# The Space Nuclear Directive Wants Reactors in Orbit by 2028. It Hasn’t Figured Out the Fuel. - Date: 2026-04-14 - Category: Space & Aerospace The 2028 orbital reactor target collides with a fuel bottleneck: the US has one HALEU producer at 900 kg per year, Russia is cut off by 2028, and new domestic capacity does not arrive until 2031. ---