A RATIONALE FOR A SET OF RISK-BASED SAFETY GOALS FOR LAUNCHING SPACE NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS

摘要

A rationale and a trial set of qualitative safety goals and quantitative design objectives for launching space nuclear power plants are presented. The rationale is based on background risks to the general public, on accident risks to the population in the area of the launch site and on other large consequence, single event catastrophes. Guidance is also obtained from the safety goals developed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Department of Energy and other regulatory agencies. The quantitative design objectives developed and presented are also compared to the calculated risks of previous launches with RTGs (Galileo, Ulysses and Cassini).