Energy remains one of the most powerful forces in the world today. It is what destroys our environment and constrains the growth of nations. In modern times, the politics of energy has driven us to war and provoked an entirely new political class,
Medical imaging procedures such as single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) scans, myocardial perfusion scans and bone scans are used to diagnose issues such as heart disease and cancer, and deliver lifesaving treatment to tens of thousands of patients every day around the world. But the material that makes these procedures possible — a radioactive isotope…
Amanda Levete’s firm AL_A is partnering with Canadian energy company General Fusion to design a pioneering power plant that will use nuclear fusion. The prototype plant will act as a demonstration facility for the technology, which uses hydrogen as fuel, with onsite facilities for experts and the general public to visit.
Scientists have long sought to harness fusion as an inexhaustible and carbon-free energy source. Within the past few years, groundbreaking high-temperature superconductor technology (HTS) sparked a new vision for achieving practical fusion energy. This approach, known as the high-field pathway to fusion, aims to generate fusion in compact devices on a shorter timescale and lower…
The old adage is that fusion power is 30 years away and always will be. The timeline envisioned by the international collaboration for ITER—the colossal, $25 billion–plus reactor under construction in France—is only a little shorter than that. Attaining the first sustained fusion reaction, or burning plasma, is scheduled to occur in 2035 at the earliest….
Inertial confinement fusion could deliver Levelised Cost Of Energy (LCOE) as low as $25/MWh compared with $50/MWh for onshore wind and $100/MWh for nuclear energy, according to new research published in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society.
Space is exciting. The idea of finding life elsewhere in the solar system or visiting another planet captures the imagination. Private companies like SpaceX getting involved to carry cargo and now crew to the International Space Station are freeing up NASA scientists to focus on more ambitious goals
Creating new sources of sustainable, reliable and zero-carbon energy is a critical national security question and may prove to be an existential threat to humanity. Investors are rushing to fund clean-tech startups that promise to meet the challenges of the 21st century. Perhaps the most transformative of those new, clean energy technologies is fusion energy.
Two and a half years ago, MIT entered into a research agreement with startup company Commonwealth Fusion Systems to develop a next-generation fusion research experiment, called SPARC, as a precursor to a practical, emissions-free power plant.
The oil industry’s search for carbon-free alternatives to fossil fuels has led to many interesting investment decisions over the years. Somewhere high on that list is nuclear fusion, the energy that powers the sun, which has drawn investment from at least three major oil companies.