RPS Fiscal Year 2012 Final Report

Fiscal year 2012 (FY12) was a strong year for the Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS) Program. I was impressed by the perseverance and tenacity of the team in solving technical, programmatic, and procedural challenges to advance the development of the Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator (ASRG), the availability of RPS, and the state of technology for future systems. At the same time, we were all inspired by the image of the first new RPS in more than two decades powering the Mars Science Laboratory—the Nation’s latest triumph on Mars. The United States remains the leader in deep space exploration because of our ability to develop and fly RPS.