US scientists repeat fusion power breakthrough for 2nd time

Lawrence Livermore achieved a net energy gain in a fusion experiment using lasers on December 5, 2022

The National Ignition Facility’s preamplifier module increases the laser energy as it travels to the Target Chamber in an undated photograph at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory federal research facility in Livermore, California, U.S. | Photo Credit: Reuters

U.S. scientists have achieved net energy gain in a fusion reaction for the second time since December last year, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory said on Sunday.

Scientists at the California-based lab repeated the breakthrough in an experiment in the National Ignition Facility (NIF) on July 30 that produced a higher energy yield than in December, a Lawrence Livermore spokesperson said.

Final results are still being analyzed, the spokesperson added.

Lawrence Livermore achieved a net energy gain in a fusion experiment using lasers on Dec. 5, 2022. The scientists focused a laser on a target of fuel to fuse two light atoms into a denser one, releasing the energy. (Reporting by Lavanya Ahire in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Yana Gaur; Editing by Leslie Adler)