Archive

U.S. Scientists Hit a Fusion First

HERE COMES THE SUN

More energy came out than went in.

cheats/2014/02/12/u-s-scientists-hit-a-fusion-first/140212-nuclear-energy-cheat_yl3y1p
Joe McNally/Getty,Joe McNally

Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory said Wednesday they have created a fusion reaction with a net release of energy for the first time in history. In other words, more energy came out of the reaction than was put into it. It's considered a milestone on the road to clean nuclear energy that produces no radioactive waste by using the same process found inside the sun (and hydrogen bombs). Scientists used 192 laser beams to compress a fuel pellet of deuterium and tritium, water isotopes, to create fusion. Are flying cars next?

Read it at The Independent