MIT's New Approach to Fusion

The idea of a fusion reactor intrigues me. I absolutely don't understand it, but I wonder, what happens if they achieve a sustainable reaction and the magnetic bottle fails? Does it shut down or does it melt down?

MIT tests unique approach to fusion power

Mimicking Earth's magnetic field in a giant thermos bottle

David Chandler, MIT News Office
March 19, 2008

An MIT team has successfully tested a novel reactor that could chart a new path toward nuclear fusion, which could become a safe, reliable and nearly limitless source of energy.

After 10 years of design, construction and testing, the reactor achieved full operation for the first time last November. Some of the...(complete article here).

Picturing Fusion

Nuclear fusion -- the "holy grail" of the quest for energy. From MIT....

New 'snapshots' aid quest for fusion energy

Anne Trafton, News Office
February 28, 2008

Physicists at MIT and the University of Rochester have devised a new way to take "snapshots" of the high-energy, high-temperature reactions seen as key to achieving the long-held dream of controlled nuclear fusion.

The work, which is reported in the Feb. 28 issue of Science, could one day help scientists harness nuclear fusion as an energy source. It could also shed light on basic questions about the physics of stars.

Nuclear fusion--the process by which atomic particles clump together to form a heavier nucleus--releases...(complete article here).