U.S. Scientists Replicate Nuclear Fusion Breakthrough Thrice

Scientists in California, shooting nearly 200 lasers at a cylinder holding a fuel capsule the size of a peppercorn, have taken another step in the quest for fusion energy, which, if mastered, could provide the world with a near-limitless source of clean power, Laura Paddison reported for CNN.

Scientists at the National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California (LLNL) managed, in a world first, to produce a nuclear fusion reaction that released more energy than it used, in a process called "ignition." I Photo: Damien Jemison, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California (LLNL)

Last year, on a December morning, scientists at the National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California (LLNL) managed, in a world first, to produce a nuclear fusion reaction that released more energy than it used, in a process called "ignition."

Now, they say they have successfully replicated ignition at least three times this year, as confirmed by a December report from the LLNL. This marks a significant step in what could be the solution to the global climate crisis.

Brian Appelbe, a research fellow from the Center for Inertial Fusion Studies at Imperial College London (ICL), said the ability to replicate demonstrates the "robustness" of the process, proving it can be achieved even when conditions such as the laser or fuel pellet are varied.

Each test also offers a chance to study the physics of ignition in detail, as reported by Ella Nilsen and René Marsh for CNN.

Unlike nuclear fission – the process used in the world’s nuclear plants today, which is generated by the division of atoms – nuclear fusion leaves no legacy of long-lived radioactive waste.

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