Steven D. Howe
Dr. Steven D. Howe is an eminent American nuclear engineer, aerospace physicist, and leading authority on space nuclear propulsion. He obtained his Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from Kansas State University in 1980, completing his core experimental thesis research on high-energy proton collisions in conjunction with the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). Highly regarded within the global aerospace community, his primary research has focused on the advanced deep-space propulsion frameworks required for future human planetary exploration.
In 2002, Dr. Howe co-founded the elite aerospace research firm Hbar Technologies alongside particle physicist Dr. Gerald Jackson. Acting as Senior Scientist, he helped steer the firm into executing high-concept engineering frameworks funded by multiple NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) grants. Among their most significant accomplishments was the development of the Antimatter-Driven Sail, a revolutionary interstellar propulsion system design that uses controlled micro-fission reactions to potentially travel to near-stellar systems. During this period, he also served as the Principal Investigator on the autonomous Micro Asteroid Prospector Powered by Energetic Radioisotopes (MAPPER) project.
From 2005 to 2015, Dr. Howe served as the founding Director of the Center for Space Nuclear Research (CSNR) at the Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Over this ten-year tenure, he initiated pioneering research into low-enriched uranium rockets and tungsten-based nuclear space fuels. At CSNR, he helped to develop the Mars Hopper, a conceptual, nuclear-powered robotic vehicle designed to explore the Martian surface through short ballistic "hops" rather than driving on wheels. Utilizing heat from radioisotopic decay as a thermal capacitor, the Mars Hopper was designed to easily collect samples from complex geographical terrains like canyons and mountains.
Prior to his leadership at the CSNR, Dr. Howe spent two decades as a staff scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory working across nuclear weapons physics and in-situ resource utilization. His expertise in advanced rocketry has made him a sought-after authority for educational science media, leading to on-screen appearances as a propulsion expert in definitive aerospace and space technology documentaries, as well as a popular speaker, year after year, at the World Science Fiction Convention, or Worldcon.
In 2002, Dr. Howe co-founded the elite aerospace research firm Hbar Technologies alongside particle physicist Dr. Gerald Jackson. Acting as Senior Scientist, he helped steer the firm into executing high-concept engineering frameworks funded by multiple NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) grants. Among their most significant accomplishments was the development of the Antimatter-Driven Sail, a revolutionary interstellar propulsion system design that uses controlled micro-fission reactions to potentially travel to near-stellar systems. During this period, he also served as the Principal Investigator on the autonomous Micro Asteroid Prospector Powered by Energetic Radioisotopes (MAPPER) project.
From 2005 to 2015, Dr. Howe served as the founding Director of the Center for Space Nuclear Research (CSNR) at the Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Over this ten-year tenure, he initiated pioneering research into low-enriched uranium rockets and tungsten-based nuclear space fuels. At CSNR, he helped to develop the Mars Hopper, a conceptual, nuclear-powered robotic vehicle designed to explore the Martian surface through short ballistic "hops" rather than driving on wheels. Utilizing heat from radioisotopic decay as a thermal capacitor, the Mars Hopper was designed to easily collect samples from complex geographical terrains like canyons and mountains.
Prior to his leadership at the CSNR, Dr. Howe spent two decades as a staff scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory working across nuclear weapons physics and in-situ resource utilization. His expertise in advanced rocketry has made him a sought-after authority for educational science media, leading to on-screen appearances as a propulsion expert in definitive aerospace and space technology documentaries, as well as a popular speaker, year after year, at the World Science Fiction Convention, or Worldcon.
