Dec 4, 2025
Beyond Blueprints, Episode #1: Nuclear Reactors in Space
ArticleMichael Bulman

Features William Madsen, Head of Engineering at Antares Industries, on nuclear technology innovations.
When we originally started recording this series of podcasts, we wanted to ensure we were talking to some of the most interesting engineers out there. Will definitely fits into this bracket with a CV that covers flight tests on radar systems for the US Air Force, launch operations for the Delta Four rocket and superconducting quantum computers at Rigetti Computing. Before making the jump to Antares, a start-up that is at the forefront of portable nuclear power supply.
In the podcast Andrew Smyth, our host and an experienced Aerospace Engineer in his own right, was able to discuss at length the mission of Antares with Will and interestingly, the 'why now' question.
Further to that, topics covered include:
- How engineering has changed and what the future looks like
- How to manage requirements in both large and small organisations
- How to keep the end goal in mind when you're building quickly
Hopefully you find the chat as fascinating as we did & if you'd like to feature or offer any feedback, you can reach me at michael@flowengineering.com





