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Nuclear fusion originates in our sun and other stars. Immense pressure and high temperatures in the core create a reaction, ultimately preventing it from collapsing under the force of gravity.
“The fusion here on Earth has a lot of corollaries to how we understand how the stars work in things like astrophysics. They both rely on studying plasma, the fourth state of matter. They both have the same types of reactions, and we use some of what we learn in how the stars work to inform how to build better fusion machines on Earth,” Commonwealth Fusion Systems CEO Bob Mumgaard said.
The company is working to replicate the sun’s fusion energy here on earth, a quest that has been long in the making.
“When it first started out, it was as much a science experiment as fission was. The question at that time was, is this possible?” said Adam Stein, director of nuclear energy innovation at the Breakthrough Institute. “There was more scientific curiosity than optimism, this would ever become a source of power for the world.”
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Commonwealth Fusion Systems is hoping to have a viable nuclear fusion reactor by the early 2030s. (Commonwealth Fusion Systems)
The quest for nuclear power began in the 1950s when scientists started designing machines to conduct their experiments. More than 70 years later, scientists have not been able to make fusion power viable for electricity.
“The biggest misconception is thinking that fusion is right around the corner. Or that people think, on the other hand, that it’s a total failure. And it’s neither. It’s real progress combined with real uncertainty,” Stein said.
As the demand for energy continues to rise, fusion scientists believe fusion power plants could help ease some of the strain.
“We need every electron on this system. And if and when fusion becomes commercially viable, it should also be in that equation because it’s…
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