Laura Anderson
Since the 1950s, scientists have been researching the possibility of nuclear fusion taking place on Earth - a reaction known to occur only inside the stars and our sun. Yet, recently scientists have made a breakthrough in developing practical nuclear fusion.
Nuclear fusion is a nuclear reaction, where two or more light nuclei collide, fusing together to form a heavier nucleus. This reaction takes place under extremely high temperatures and pressure, hence why it naturally occurs in stars and the sun. First discovered in the 1930s, scientists have been looking for a way to use this reaction to produce large amounts of energy for our planet, while reducing the amount of carbon and radioactive energy released.
In 1950, soviet scientists, Andrei Sakharov and Igor Tamm, introduced the idea of a magnetic confinement fusion device, named the Tokamak. This device proposed to generate
thermonuclear fusion power, through the use of magnetic fields to confine fusion fuel in the form of a plasma.
This would be followed by a second design in 1951, by Lyman Spitzer, known as the Stellarator. However, it would be forgotten once research showed that the Tokamak was more efficient.
Yet recently, UK-based JET Laboratory has made a major breakthrough in the use of nuclear fusion, breaking their own world record. On Wednesday 9th February 2022, the fusion reactor was able to produce 59 megajoules over a period of 11 seconds - amounting to 11 megawatts of power. This was double the previous record in 1997 achieved by the UK Atomic Energy Authority.
“The JET Experiments put us a step closer to fusion power.” - Dr Joe Milnes.
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