Russian company Rosatom has developed a nuclear power propulsion system that could get a spacecraft to Mars in just over a month. The trip currently takes 18 months.

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Not only would the new technology make the trip faster, but it would also allow a spacecraft to maneuver throughout the flight. Current engines only allow for a defined trajectory flight, but they also don't have the capacity to return from Mars.Traditional rocket engines are actually believed to have reached the limit of their potential, but the proposed nuclear drive could be used for both close-range expeditions - like to the moon - and also for deep-space missions.The nuclear engine project began in 2010 and an engineering design had been created by 2012. The budget is around $274 million, and prototype testing is expected to begin in 2018.NASA recently theorized about a method to to get unmanned probes to Mars in just three days, too.

Alanah Pearce is IGN's Toys & Culture Editor, but she sometimes wishes she was an astronaut instead. You can find her on Twitter @Charalanahzard