The Department of Energy recently announced a fusion reaction in California made history by achieving fusion ignition.
The achievement occurred at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, Calif., when a team "conducted the first controlled fusion experiment in history to reach this milestone, also known as scientific energy breakeven, meaning it produced more energy from fusion than the laser energy used to drive it," according to a Dec. 13 news release.
"This is a landmark achievement for the researchers and staff at the National Ignition Facility who have dedicated their careers to seeing fusion ignition become a reality, and this milestone will undoubtedly spark even more discovery," U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm said in the news release. "The Biden-Harris administration is committed to supporting our world-class scientists — like the team at NIF — whose work will help us solve humanity's most complex and pressing problems, like providing clean power to combat climate change and maintaining a nuclear deterrent without nuclear testing."
During nuclear fusion, two light nuclei are combined into a heavier one, releasing a significant amount of energy, CNBC reported. For decades, scientists have been attempting to generate energy by fusion on earth, the same way the sun does. In order to achieve ignition, the fusion experiment must have produced more energy from the reaction than the laser energy used to drive it.
According to CNBC, two units of energy, or megajoules, went into the reaction and about three megajoules came out.
"This historic, first-of-its kind achievement will provide unprecedented capability to support NNSA’s Stockpile Stewardship Program and will provide invaluable insights into the prospects of clean fusion energy, which would be a game-changer for efforts to achieve President Biden’s goal of a net-zero carbon economy," the release reported.
