Momentous landmark event in harnessing nuclear fusion energy
Net energy gain achieved in nuclear fusion experiment .
First demonstration that nuclear fusion can be a viable energy source.
Quite possibly the biggest scientific breakthrough of the twenty first century!
Does this mean unlimited clean energy (carbon -free energy)? Will it become practical in time to wean us off fossil fuels and solve the climate crises?
192 high-powered lasers focused on a pellet of hydrogen triggered a nuclear fusion reaction. (fusing hydrogen into helium with a release of energy)
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Major nuclear fusion energy breakthrough
December’s nuclear energy breakthrough occurred at the National Ignition Facility, which uses a process called “thermonuclear inertial fusion.”
Essentially, the $3.5 billion laser complex shoots 192 lasers at a tiny capsule. The capsule contains two hydrogen isotopes that, when bombarded with energy, vaporize almost immediately. The fusion process releases enormous amounts of energy.
In the past, the energy input from the lasers far exceeded the energy output from the fusion reaction. But on December 5, researchers tried something new.
The shell around the capsule they used was thicker than in past experiments, meaning that small flaws effect the experiment less. This simple – and incredibly replicable – change allowed something incredible to happen.
Dr. Marvin Adams, NNSA Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs, described the process at Tuesday’s press conference. He noted that the process began with a spherical cylinder containing a small capsule, “about half the diameter of a BB.”
“192 laser beams entered from the two ends of the cylinder,” he said, “and struck the inner wall…. X-rays from the wall impinged on the spherical capsule. Fusion fuel in the capsule got squeezed, fusion reactions started. This had all happened before, 100 times before. But last week for the first time, they designed this experiment so that the fusion fuel stayed hot enough, dense enough and round enough for long enough that it ignited. And it produced more energies than the lasers had deposited. About 2 megajoules in, about 3 megajoules out. A gain of 1.5.
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