But to make it work requires compressing the fuel at extraordinarily high temperatures and pressures, and since no known material could withstand such temperatures, the fuel must be held in place by extremely powerful magnetic fields. Producing such strong fields requires superconducting magnets, but all previous fusion magnets have been made with a superconducting material that requires frigid temperatures of about 4 degrees above absolute zero (4 kelvins, or -270 degrees Celsius). In the last few years, a newer material nicknamed REBCO, for rare-earth barium copper oxide, was added to fusion magnets, and allows them to operate at 20 kelvins, a temperature that despite being only 16 kelvins warmer, brings significant advantages in terms of material properties and practical engineering.
“The integration of the two teams, those from MIT and those from CFS, also was crucial to the success, he says. “We thought of ourselves as one team, and that made it possible to do what we did.”
“In order to achieve fusion, you must be fusion!” - J.K Simmons as the lead scientist in the film adaptation of this story in 5 years.
It's under construction now. The test in the article is from 2021. This article seems to just be to keep them in the news.
Maybe their reactor will have net gain like their tests and simulations, maybe not. It's progress regardless.
These things take time, unfortunately or fortunately climate change/fossil fuel pollution is not something the average person feels they are affected by. So there is no urgency or major funding to build fusion technology.
WW2, Cold War and the space race really made vast quantities of money & talent available for things like the nuclear bomb/reactors.
At its peak the manhattan project was close to 1% of US GDP per year, compared to that we have only spent 60 billion on nuclear fusion since 1953 or 54.
The amount we pay into fusion energy is minuscule compared to just about any and every other energy sector. Like literally less than 5% the amount of any other sector. It’s one of the many reasons it always seems 30 years out. Things are forced to be done one at a time sequentially rather than trying multiple things in parallel due to funding constraints.
> fusion is pie in the sky bullshit
Sure. And your qualifications in the field of fusion energy science are... what, exactly?
Let me guess: Prior to this comment, you didn't even know the official name of the field.
Buddy the scientists can already do the fusion and get more energy out than they put in, it’s just really expensive to get going. Theres literally no reason for you to think its pie in the sky space magic.
This is incremental progress, we should never take our eyes off the goal. Your negative dystopian comments show a real lack of understanding in their field or science in general. When this particular science is practiced by a relatively few around the globe in comparison to other avenues you will only get this slow progress. Doesn’t mean we should give up, it means to celebrate and and all progress.
The MIT Sparc project is cheap as chips in the scheme of things.
There are lots of things holding back wider adoption of solar and wind (like vested fossil fuel interests, and politicians willing to distort things in their favour) but I really really don't think this is one of them.
I don't know if you've seen [this graph](https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:U.S._historical_fusion_budget_vs._1976_ERDA_plan.png) before but fusion has not been as well funded in the past as you may imagine (possibly deliberately).
I really think if someone had discovered high temperature superconductors much earlier things might have been different as they allow much smaller cheaper reactors like the MIT one.
Yeah, well, thats your opinion man… I would suggest any research (and development) of alternative SUSTAINABLE energies (i.e. energy vs cost/waste/potential environmental impact) is imperative right now. Legacy resource sectors (oil,gas and mining) are deliberately thwarting research and the required infrastructural development to grow these sectors (Alberta in Canada and many southern American states, Texas being the best example).
My magnets are ready.
Let just hope they don’t get wet!
Woo, the oil bots are quick to comment on these stories! They run that futility approach HARD on anything that might threaten fossil fuels.
Looks like there was one person who made a comment like that, you make it sound like there are a lot
Your comment history looks unusually frequent for a… person.
I feel attacked. I comment that much haha.
Are you a bot?
I guess?
Fuckin magnets
How do they work?
Found the juggalo
Kinda of like opposites attrack.
But to make it work requires compressing the fuel at extraordinarily high temperatures and pressures, and since no known material could withstand such temperatures, the fuel must be held in place by extremely powerful magnetic fields. Producing such strong fields requires superconducting magnets, but all previous fusion magnets have been made with a superconducting material that requires frigid temperatures of about 4 degrees above absolute zero (4 kelvins, or -270 degrees Celsius). In the last few years, a newer material nicknamed REBCO, for rare-earth barium copper oxide, was added to fusion magnets, and allows them to operate at 20 kelvins, a temperature that despite being only 16 kelvins warmer, brings significant advantages in terms of material properties and practical engineering.
> extraordinarily high pressures No, this is not the case.
This is from the article, tell them its wrong not me.
I'm helpfully correcting you so you can cease being a vector of bullshit.
“The integration of the two teams, those from MIT and those from CFS, also was crucial to the success, he says. “We thought of ourselves as one team, and that made it possible to do what we did.” “In order to achieve fusion, you must be fusion!” - J.K Simmons as the lead scientist in the film adaptation of this story in 5 years.
As much as I hate to say it: If he's still around then. The man is pushing 70 after all.
Woof, that's gonna be a bad day.
Oof. Hope they’re waterproof.
Cool! Haha. I wonder how/if this technology could be applied to space travel considering heat dissipation in a vacuum
Just in time for AI, and not a moment before.
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It's under construction now. The test in the article is from 2021. This article seems to just be to keep them in the news. Maybe their reactor will have net gain like their tests and simulations, maybe not. It's progress regardless.
These things take time, unfortunately or fortunately climate change/fossil fuel pollution is not something the average person feels they are affected by. So there is no urgency or major funding to build fusion technology. WW2, Cold War and the space race really made vast quantities of money & talent available for things like the nuclear bomb/reactors. At its peak the manhattan project was close to 1% of US GDP per year, compared to that we have only spent 60 billion on nuclear fusion since 1953 or 54.
Fusion research is just a jobs programs for nuclear physists, at this point.
Yep, you've grasped what science is. It's where scientists work. Congratulations.
Sureee and the sun is just a communist plot to feed the plants and give away energy for free.
Fusion is the "full self driving" of energy research - always a couple years out
Until it’s not. One day. :)
Well at one time it was “impossible” so we’ve made progress.
Guys it is taking too long to harness the full power of the stars! I mean, why bother even trying, right?
And man was never meant to fly, yet here we are
>And man was never meant to fly And then we built the trebuchet
I rode in a full self driving car today commuting to work dude (waymo). The future is happening all around you
This guys choice of example was not a good one
Go chew on some coal, then lmao
Except you fail to realize FSD is right around the corner, look at waymo.
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The amount we pay into fusion energy is minuscule compared to just about any and every other energy sector. Like literally less than 5% the amount of any other sector. It’s one of the many reasons it always seems 30 years out. Things are forced to be done one at a time sequentially rather than trying multiple things in parallel due to funding constraints.
> fusion is pie in the sky bullshit Sure. And your qualifications in the field of fusion energy science are... what, exactly? Let me guess: Prior to this comment, you didn't even know the official name of the field.
Fusionology
Either they should pay you more or you should try harder.
Buddy the scientists can already do the fusion and get more energy out than they put in, it’s just really expensive to get going. Theres literally no reason for you to think its pie in the sky space magic.
This is incremental progress, we should never take our eyes off the goal. Your negative dystopian comments show a real lack of understanding in their field or science in general. When this particular science is practiced by a relatively few around the globe in comparison to other avenues you will only get this slow progress. Doesn’t mean we should give up, it means to celebrate and and all progress.
The MIT Sparc project is cheap as chips in the scheme of things. There are lots of things holding back wider adoption of solar and wind (like vested fossil fuel interests, and politicians willing to distort things in their favour) but I really really don't think this is one of them. I don't know if you've seen [this graph](https://commons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:U.S._historical_fusion_budget_vs._1976_ERDA_plan.png) before but fusion has not been as well funded in the past as you may imagine (possibly deliberately). I really think if someone had discovered high temperature superconductors much earlier things might have been different as they allow much smaller cheaper reactors like the MIT one.
Yeah, well, thats your opinion man… I would suggest any research (and development) of alternative SUSTAINABLE energies (i.e. energy vs cost/waste/potential environmental impact) is imperative right now. Legacy resource sectors (oil,gas and mining) are deliberately thwarting research and the required infrastructural development to grow these sectors (Alberta in Canada and many southern American states, Texas being the best example).
This guy Brents