As the world shifts toward clean and sustainable energy, Kazakhstan stands on the cusp of a significant move into nuclear energy. Kazakh president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has suggested a national referendum to gauge the country’s position on building a nuclear power plant, setting the stage for an in-depth discussion about the nation’s energy trajectory.
UKIFS takes reigns of the U.K.’s STEP fusion program
Leadership of the United Kingdom’s STEP (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production) fusion program has transitioned to U.K. Industrial Fusion Solutions Ltd. (UKIFS), a wholly owned subsidiary...
What’s different about Pacific Fusion’s pulsed magnetic concept?
With more than 40 fusion development companies announcing plans and funding, it’s hard for a newcomer to stand out, but Pacific Fusion is giving it a try. The company, based in Fremont,...
Australian undergrads are crafting a tokamak device
Commercial nuclear power is illegal in Australia, and it has been since the 1990s. This past June, however, the country’s main opposition party announced plans to build seven commercial...
Colorado State begins constructing laser lab as public-private research hub
In the foothills of the Rocky Mountains on the outskirts of Fort Collins, Colo.—home to Colorado State University—work began this month on a new laser facility funded by a public-private...
General Atomics releases FUSE—an open-source fusion power design tool
Earlier this month, General Atomics made its Fusion Synthesis Engine (FUSE) software available to others who want to design and build magnetic confinement fusion power plants....
DOE issues $49 million to shift national lab research toward fusion energy vision
The Department of Energy announced yesterday a total of $49 million in funding for 19 projects in the Foundational Fusion Materials, Nuclear Science, and Technology programs that span...
Kazakh voters say “yes” to nuclear power
A historic referendum in Kazakhstan this past weekend showed that its citizens strongly support adding nuclear generation to the nation’s energy supply....
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Senators probe global competition in fusion energy deployment
Hours before the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) opened a scheduled September 19 hearing on fusion energy technology development, CNN published an article titled...
Dust: Trapped by a laser or threatening ITER, it’s making headlines
Start talking about dust in a vacuum, and some people will think of household chores. But dust has featured in recent nuclear science and engineering headlines in curious ways: ITER is...
Teenager’s school project achieves plasma
Cesare Mencarini’s recent extended project qualification (EPQ) earned him an “A” for his studies in the United Kingdom—and became, it is believed, the first nuclear reactor built in a...