American scientists attempt to 'create a sun on Earth'(telegraph.co.uk)
telegraph.co.uk
American scientists attempt to 'create a sun on Earth'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/picture-galleries/8134432/American-scientists-attempt-to-create-a-sun-on-Earth-using-nuclear-fusion.html
1 comments
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inertial_confinement_fusion
In 1983 I toured the Nova laser site you can see in the illustration while it was being constructed. It's very real stuff, the walls of the collision chamber were 8 feet thick to keep the (projected) neutron flux from harming people and things (transmuting ... which is why current fusion approaches almost certainly won't be practical power plants, we need aneutronic fusion (e.g. H3) for that.
As a side note, these laser systems are great for nuclear weapons simulations and 3rd generation (vectored, e.g. X-ray/gamma laser) nuclear weapons development.
In 1983 I toured the Nova laser site you can see in the illustration while it was being constructed. It's very real stuff, the walls of the collision chamber were 8 feet thick to keep the (projected) neutron flux from harming people and things (transmuting ... which is why current fusion approaches almost certainly won't be practical power plants, we need aneutronic fusion (e.g. H3) for that.
As a side note, these laser systems are great for nuclear weapons simulations and 3rd generation (vectored, e.g. X-ray/gamma laser) nuclear weapons development.
Plus, I think it will take a lot more than a laser to create fusion.. Haven't they been building a fusion plant in France for the past 10 years?