A 1959 NASA illustration of a manned spacecraft using nuclear-electric propulsion, with the crew and ion engines at one end, the reactor at the other, and a long structure in between to provide separation and space for the vast radiators needed. Even though ion engines provide almost laughably weak thrust levels, the design could have benefited greatly from turning those engines around to *pull* the vehicle rather than *push* it. That would turn the long spine from being in compression to being in tension. This would allow it to not only be lighter in mass but more stable.
