Researchers are striving to harness fusion processes, akin to the energy source fuelling the sun, at International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), with the aim of providing Earth with an essentially limitless energy supply. While the notion might evoke associations with a certain ideology from the Mandalorian, ITER researchers assert that ‘The Way’ on Earth is progressing towards an unprecedented goal: achieving endless energy, as reported by TCD.
If successful, the researchers in southern France could present what ITER’s communications lead, Laban Coblentz, describes as ‘arguably the most intricate machine ever designed’, offering a cleaner alternative to both fossil fuels and nuclear fission, according to Euronews Next. Despite well-publicized incidents related to nuclear energy, the technology remains stable under proper supervision and protection from environmental factors such as earthquakes. Nuclear energy is far from a recent scientific concept.
The 436 nuclear reactors operating on fission principles involve colliding neutrons into larger atoms to split them into smaller particles, generating energy. Despite the production of radioactive waste in this process, it doesn’t release substantial amounts of greenhouse gases into the environment. In contrast, fusion occurs when two smaller particles collide, resulting in the formation of a heavier atom. According to the US Department of Energy, this yields significantly more energy than fission and doesn’t produce radioactive waste.
As reported by The News International, the ITER team’s objective is to demonstrate the industrialization of the fusion process, a project they have been working on since at least 2005. Among their experimental subjects is the largest magnetic confinement chamber on Earth, referred to by researchers as a tokamak.
