Fusion Energy


Peering Inside an Artificial Sun -- David L. Chandler  -- PhysOrg.com  -- January 29, 2010
Energy

After more than five decades of research, a major milestone toward the harnessing of fusion power is expected within the next year or two. This milestone, known as "fusion ignition," should take place at the National Ignition Facility, an experimental facility built for that purpose in California.


Fusion Dreams Delayed -- Geoff Brumfiel  -- Nature  -- May 27, 2009
Physics

Faced with ballooning costs and growing delays, ITER — a multi-billion-euro international experiment boldly aiming to prove atomic fusion as a power source — will initially be far less ambitious than physicists had hoped, with the first experiment capable of validating fusion power not likely before the end of 2025.


In Hot Pursuit of Fusion -- William J. Broad  -- New York Times  -- May 26, 2009
Physics

A look at the work of the National Ignition Facility, a U.S. government fusion research facility that if successful, "would help keep the nation’s nuclear arms reliable without underground testing, would reveal the hidden life of stars and would prepare the way for radically new kinds of power plants."


Friendly 'Death Star' Laser to Recreate Sun's Power -- Jeremy Hsu  -- Space.com  -- April 8, 2009
Fusion Energy

The newly completed National Ignition Facility (NIF) has begun harnessing lasers to create a fusion reaction rivaling the power of a miniature sun. The lasers will eventually focus their power on compressing and heating a single, pea-sized fuel capsule to more than 180 million degrees Fahrenheit in order to trigger thermonuclear fusion.


Fusion We Can Believe In? -- Alan Boyle  -- MSNBC News  -- December 16, 2008
Energy

Working on a shoestring budget, researchers have found no reason why a low-cost approach to nuclear fusion won't work.


Better Control for Fusion Power -- Katherine Bourzac  -- Technology Review  -- December 10, 2008
Energy

Physicists at MIT have addressed one of the many technological challenges involved in harnessing nuclear fusion as a viable energy source by demonstrating that pulses of radio frequency waves can be used to propel and heat plasma inside a reactor.


Mining the Moon -- Mark Williams  -- Technology Review  -- August 23, 2007
Fusion Energy

Lab experiments suggest that future fusion reactors could use helium-3 gathered from the moon.


France to Be Site of World's First Nuclear Fusion Reactor -- Craig S. Smith  -- New York Times  -- June 28, 2005
Fusion Energy

France won an international competition today to be the site of the world's first nuclear fusion reactor, an estimated $12 billion project that many scientists see as essential to solving the world's future energy needs.


A Magnetosphere of One's Own -- Rachel Metz  -- Wired News  -- December 15, 2004
Physics

Scientists have built a device that mimics the magnetic fields surrounding the Earth and other planets. They hope to use the device to understand how the Earth's protective magnetosphere works -- and possibly gain insights into how to make fusion a feasible energy source.


Fusion: Stepping closer to reality -- Peter N. Spotts  -- Christian Science Monitor  -- December 9, 2004
Fusion Energy

Scientists say they are more confident than ever that they can successfully build and operate a planned experimental fusion reactor, a necessary step for fusion energy to prove the technology's commercial potential.

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