Fast-tracking fusion energy: Fusion could create the clean energy the world needs, but scientists are divided on the best approach

Fast-tracking fusion energy: Fusion could create the clean energy the world needs, but scientists are divided on the best approach

When the US National Ignition Facility (NIF) sparked a fusion reaction that generated 1.35 megajoules (MJ) of energy, enough to power the typical American household for around 20 minutes, the fusion community rejoiced. For years, researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory facility had been firing intensely powerful laser pulses at peppercorn-sized fuel pellets to claw…