Part 2 of the TED Radio Hour episode Making sense of the sun
A fusion reactor promises almost limitless energy—if we can build it. Physicist Tammy Ma explains how her team achieved fusion ignition, a crucial milestone powered by the world's largest laser.
About Tammy Ma
Plasma physicist Tammy Ma leads the Inertial Fusion Energy Initiative at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where she develops ways to harness the power of nuclear fusion through the use of the world's most energetic laser system. She was a member of the team at the National Ignition Facility that achieved fusion ignition in December 2022 — an experiment that, for the first time in history, released more energy than it consumed. A fellow of the American Physical Society, she serves on the Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee, advising the US Department of Energy's Office of Science on issues related to fusion energy and plasma research.
This segment of the TED Radio Hour was produced by James Delahoussaye and edited by Sanaz Meshkinpour. You can follow us on Facebook @TEDRadioHour and email us at TEDRadioHour@npr.org.
Web Resources
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