The U.S. Department of Defense is actively building nuclear microreactors at military installations across the country, marking a significant shift in how the armed forces plan to power critical infrastructure. Nine Army bases have been selected to potentially host these compact reactors, while the Air Force is planning its first operational microreactor at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska, expected to deliver power by 2027. This military adoption of advanced nuclear technology reflects a broader recognition that traditional power grids may not meet the energy demands of modern defense operations and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.

What Are Nuclear Microreactors and Why Does the Military Want Them?

Nuclear microreactors are a subset of small modular reactors (SMRs), compact nuclear facilities that generate 20 megawatts of electricity or less. Unlike traditional nuclear plants that produce 550 to 1,500 megawatts per unit, microreactors are designed to operate independently from the electrical grid, making them ideal for remote locations or installations that need reliable, on-site power generation. The military's interest stems from the need for energy independence and resilience at bases that may face grid vulnerabilities or operate in remote regions.

The Department of Defense launched two major programs to accelerate microreactor deployment. In April 2025, the Advanced Nuclear Power for Installations program named eight eligible vendors to develop commercial microreactors for military use. Later that year, in October 2025, the Department of the Army announced the Janus Program, which builds on an earlier project called Project Pele, a transportable nuclear reactor designed for electricity production. This layered approach suggests the military views nuclear microreactors as a critical infrastructure priority.

Which Military Bases Are Getting Nuclear Reactors?

The Army has selected nine installations to potentially host microreactors as part of the Janus Program. These bases span multiple regions and represent a geographically diverse deployment strategy:

• Fort Benning: Located in Georgia, a major infantry training center
• Fort Bragg: Home to the Special Forces Command in North Carolina
• Fort Campbell: A major Army installation straddling Kentucky and Tennessee
• Fort Drum: Located in upstate New York, a key deployment hub
• Fort Hood: One of the largest Army bases in Texas
• Fort Wainwright: An Alaska-based installation in a remote region
• Holston Army Ammunition Plant: A critical munitions facility in Tennessee
• Joint Base Lewis-McChord: A major installation in Washington state
• Redstone Arsenal: A research and development hub in Alabama

The Air Force is taking a different approach by partnering with Oklo Inc., a nuclear technology company, to deploy a sodium-cooled Aurora microreactor at Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska. This pilot project aims to deliver between 1 and 5 megawatts of electricity by 2027 and will be commercially owned and operated. The Navy, meanwhile, has been using advanced nuclear reactors to power aircraft carriers and submarines since the 1950s but is now exploring commercial on-site SMRs and microreactors for land-based installations.

How Do These Reactors Work and What Makes Them Different?

Nuclear microreactors employ several different cooling and fuel technologies, each with distinct advantages. The most common designs use light water as a coolant, similar to conventional reactors, but some advanced designs use alternative coolants like helium gas, liquid metal, or molten salt. These alternatives allow reactors to operate at higher temperatures, which can improve efficiency and reduce the physical footprint required for power generation.

Many new reactor designs use high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel, which is uranium enriched between 5 percent and under 20 percent uranium-235. This is more highly enriched than the standard low-enriched uranium fuel used in most U.S. reactors today. The higher enrichment increases fuel burnup, meaning more energy is extracted from each fuel unit, which improves efficiency, allows for smaller reactor designs, and reduces the amount of spent nuclear waste produced.

How to Understand the Different Types of Advanced Reactor Designs

The nuclear industry is developing several distinct reactor technologies, each suited to different applications and operational requirements:

• High-Temperature Gas Reactors (HTGRs): Use helium gas as a coolant and graphite as a moderator, capable of operating at very high temperatures suitable for industrial processes like hydrogen production through electrolysis
• Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs): Use molten salts as both fuel and coolant, operating at high temperatures and suitable for both electricity generation and industrial heat applications
• Sodium-Cooled Reactors (SCRs): Use liquid sodium instead of water as a coolant, allowing operation at higher temperatures and lower pressures while potentially burning more fuel efficiently
• Light Water-Cooled SMRs: Smaller versions of existing reactor designs using standard low-enriched uranium fuel, intended to provide scalable baseload electricity to traditional power grids

The Department of Energy has accelerated support for these technologies through multiple funding mechanisms. In March 2025, the DOE reissued a tender for $900 million in federal funding to promote SMR development. In June 2025, the DOE announced the Energy Reactor Pilot Program, which aims to expedite testing of advanced reactor designs at sites outside national laboratories. Nine vendors were selected for this program, including Aalo Atomics Inc., Antares Nuclear Inc., Deep Fission Inc., Last Energy Inc., Oklo Inc., Natura Resources LLC, Radiant Industries Inc., Terrestrial Energy Inc., and Valar Atomics Inc. .

The DOE also established the Fuel Line Pilot Program to support the Energy Reactor Pilot Program by establishing a domestic nuclear fuel supply chain for testing new reactors. This program uses DOE authorization to build and operate nuclear fuel production facilities and provides a fast-tracked approach to commercial licensing.

Why Is the Military Adopting Nuclear Power Now?

The military's push toward nuclear microreactors reflects several converging pressures. Traditional power grids face increasing vulnerability to cyberattacks and physical damage, making on-site power generation attractive for critical defense installations. Additionally, emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and advanced computing systems require massive amounts of electricity, and microreactors offer a compact, carbon-free solution that doesn't depend on grid infrastructure.

The timeline for deployment is accelerating. The Air Force's Eielson project is expected to begin delivering power by 2027, suggesting that operational nuclear microreactors at military bases are no longer a distant prospect but a near-term reality. This represents a significant shift in how the Department of Defense approaches energy security and infrastructure resilience.

The broader context matters too. The U.S. currently operates about 98 gigawatts of nuclear generating capacity through traditional large-scale reactors, but very little new nuclear capacity has been built in recent decades due to high capital costs and lengthy licensing processes. SMRs and microreactors are designed to overcome these barriers by reducing construction times through factory-assembled modular components and offering greater siting flexibility for locations where large plants are impractical.

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