The Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm, announced a significant scientific advancement in fusion research at a news conference on December 13, 2022. This breakthrough occurred at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California.
During this pivotal event, held in the early hours of December 5, researchers employed lasers to concentrate energy on a small pellet of hydrogen fuel. The lasers delivered 2.05 megajoules of energy, leading the pellet to emit approximately 3.15 megajoules.
This achievement marks a major milestone for fusion science, which has aimed to create a reaction producing more energy than its input for over fifty years. However, achieving this does not yet imply that fusion energy can soon supply power without greenhouse gas emissions.
The current focus is on understanding the implications of this experiment and identifying additional steps necessary for fusion to become a viable energy source. Regina G. Barber explores these developments in two stories featured today on the show. The episode includes contributions from editors Amina Khan, Ally Schweitzer, and Gabriel Spitzer, with production by Gisele Grayson.
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