Beyond belief!: US announces historic nuclear fusion breakthrough, but how is it important for us?

US scientists announced the much-awaited revolution in nuclear fusion technology. On Tuesday, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm announced a "major scientific breakthrough" in the decades-long research to harness nuclear fusion energy.

Nuclear fusion is different from nuclear fission, the energy that is used in making atom bombs. Nuclear fusion energy powers celestial bodies like the sun and stars, and has also been an unachievable form of energy by humankind, until now.

The Energy Department confirmed that the researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California for the first time produced more energy in a fusion reaction that was used to ignite it, which is called net energy gain. This is for the first time that humans have achieved success in replicating the same energy that powers the sun.

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Granholm said that this achievement will pave the way for developments in national defence and the future of clean power. Granholm was alongside the Livermore researchers at a news conference in Washington.

What are experts saying about this achievement?

LLNL director Dr. Kim Budil rejoiced by saying, "This is a historic achievement… over the past 60 years, thousands of people have contributed to this endeavourand it took real vision to get us here."

Granholm further said, "This is a landmark achievement for the researchers and staffat theNational Ignition Facilitywho have dedicated their careers to seeing the fusion ignition become a reality, and this milestone will undoubtedly spark even more discovery."

White House science advisor, Aarti Prabhakar, called the nuclear ignition" a tremendous example of what persistence can achieve" and an "engineering marvel beyond belief".

What isnuclear fusion energy and how is it of importance?

Nuclear fusion has been dubbed the "holy grail" of energy generation. It is the process by which the Sun and other stars are powered.

It works by bringing two light atoms together, releasing a large amount of energy in the process.

It is the inverse of nuclear fission, which occurs when heavy atoms are split apart. Fission is the technology currently used in nuclear power plants, but the process generates a lot of waste that emits radiation for a long time. It is hazardous and must be stored safely. Nuclear fusion generates far more energy while emitting only trace amounts of radioactive waste. Importantly, the process emits no greenhouse gases and thus does not contribute to climate change.

However, one of the difficulties is that forcing and maintaining the elements together in fusion requires extremely high temperatures and pressures. Until now, no experiment has produced more energy than the amount invested to make it work.