What is a nuclear fusion explain?
The Sun and other stars are powered by nuclear fusion reactions. A fusion reaction occurs when two light nuclei combine to form a single heavier nucleus. Because the total mass of the resulting single nucleus is less than the mass of the two original nuclei, the process releases energy. The remaining mass is converted into energy.
Is nuclear fusion possible yet?
International Cooperation Since the concept of nuclear fusion was discovered in the 1930s, experiments have been ongoing, and today there are approximately 20 fusion reactors around the world, all attempting to reach the extremely high temperatures required for fusion to occur.
How close are we to nuclear fusion?
Scientists believe they are only a few years away from extracting more energy from fusion reactions than was required to create them. Venture capitalists are pouring billions of dollars into companies in an effort to build a fusion power plant by the early 2030s.
How is nuclear fusion created?
Nuclear fusion produces the same energy that powers the sun and stars by combining the nuclei of two light atoms at high speeds. These atoms then combine to form the nucleus of a heavier atom, releasing energy in the process.
Why is nuclear fusion so powerful?
Abundant energy: Controlled atom fusion produces nearly four million times the energy of a chemical reaction such as coal, oil, or gas combustion, and four times the energy of nuclear fission reactions (at equal mass).
Can nuclear fusion destroy the earth?
Nuclear fusion, while producing enormous amounts of energy (far more than nuclear fission), cannot destroy the earth.
US scientists
How will nuclear fusion change the world?
Scientists hope that one day nuclear fusion will be able to replace fossil fuels, thereby aiding in the fight against climate change.
Will nuclear fusion save us?
Fusion promises a virtually limitless source of energy that, unlike fossil fuels, emits no greenhouse gases and, unlike current nuclear fission power, generates no long-lived radioactive waste. Understanding it could literally save humanity from climate change, a crisis we created.
Is nuclear fusion the future?
Many scientists believe that fusion is the future of energy, and they are betting big on it. A clean, abundant fuel so efficient that the entire annual supply of Earth could fit in a swimming pool. That’s the fantasy, but the science is there as well. JET’s tokamak interior, with visualised plasma on the left.