The National Ignition Facility (and fusion power) has been in the news lately. (pdf) [more inside]
posted by Orange Pamplemousse on Nov 28, 2011 - 38 comments

Inspired by a talk by Dr. Robert W. Bussard, Mark Suppes, a web developer by day, has built his own nuclear fusion reactor. [more inside]
posted by fearfulsymmetry on Jun 24, 2010 - 23 comments

Teenager Thiogo Olson achieved nuclear fusion with an apparatus built in his basement from parts found at his local hardware store and on eBay. Another teenager put together her very own Littrow Spectrograph for $300. Young people have been doing some fascinating science ever since the first kid combined vinegar and baking soda in their model volcano. Not only are they making some remarkable discoveries, they're finding it pretty lucrative.
posted by Toekneesan on Mar 17, 2007 - 9 comments

ITER goes to France. Amazing stuff happens at 100 million degrees Celsius.
posted by magullo on Jun 28, 2005 - 19 comments

The largest and most powerful laser facility ever designed is currently being constructed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, CA. I had an opportunity to tour this facility earlier this year, and the sheer magnitude of this engineering project is staggering. The precision required for ignition has been compared to "trying to hit the strike zone with a baseball from 350 miles away". Although the scientists and politicians responsible for the National Ignition Facility claim it will help lessen the danger of nuclear weapons, many critics argue it is merely an attempt to work around certain non-proliferation treaties.
posted by muddgirl on May 23, 2005 - 31 comments

Take enough electricity to power 100 houses for two minutes and use it to generate enough elecrticity to power one 40-watt lightbulb for one ten-thousandth of a second. What do you have? Nuclear Fusion.
posted by alms on Apr 7, 2003 - 17 comments