Last class we went on a field trip to MIT to see their nuclear fusion lab. 85% of the worlds energy comes from fossil fuels, which when converted into energy are damaging to the environment and aren’t renewable so eventually we will run out of fossil fuels. The hunt for a better energy source is ongoing, but a lot of people think nuclear fusion is the answer. Nuclear fusion has no waste, can be done basically anywhere and has no possibility of a meltdown unlike nuclear fission. So what’s the problem? Well it’s very complicated and costly. Scientists around the world have been working on ironing out the fusion problems, but they still aren’t there yet. There has been a lot of progress though, which is what we saw at MIT.
When we got there we had a little energy 101 lesson, which turned into a more in depth nuclear fission lesson which made my head spin. I am not really a science person, but it amazed me how knowledgeable they were and how people could figure something like that out. It is such a complicated process, and I am still amazed at how people could even think of doing it, let alone making it actually happen. After the lesson we went into their lab, which was pretty much what you would expect from a scientific research lab. There were rows and rows of computers. The most surprising thing was how old some of their technology was; they had telephones from the 90’s and some of their computers were pretty ancient too.
After looking at their lab we went into where their nuclear fusion reactor is. It was really loud inside, and it didn’t look at all how I thought it would. Our tour guide said that they run the reactor a few times a day, but only for a second or so. A few years ago they were only able to run it for fractions of a second, so that shows you they are advancing. I was pretty surprised at how much energy they are using in their reactor lab. He said they use so much energy that sometimes the power companies have to call them and tell them not to run because it may cause a blackout because the energy companies cannot keep up. They are trying to crack the energy problem, but they are using an awful lot themselves to solve it.
They may be advancing and getting closer, but it seems like nuclear fusion is still far from solving the worlds energy crisis.
Nice blog (though it’s fusion –not fission).