Scientists achieve 'world first' by heating plasma to multimillion degree temperatures: 'Helping to unlock the mysteries of the cosmos'
The research team is part of the world's largest stellarator facility, Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X), where scientists have been hard at work developing a more efficient way to generate fusion energy. And now, they've finally achieved their goal, generating high-energy helium-3 ions for the first time.
Nuclear fusion is the process of using force to merge two atomic nuclei. The act of combining these nuclei results in a tremendous release of energy, which provides a great deal of power that can be used for everything from fuel alternatives to electricity on a commercial scale.
Fusion is a clean and naturally occurring means of energy generation; in fact, it's the primary type of power and reaction that creates the stars. And it doesn't generate polluting emissions the way other fuel sources do, appealing to climate advocates. Therefore, the more we can scale our usage of fusion, the cleaner and less overheated our planet's atmosphere will be.
For fusion to happen, the process must be made more efficient. Fusion occurs inside a superheated plasma, which is kept at multimillion-degree temperatures. Traditionally, this fusion results in high-energy "alpha particles" (helium-4 nuclei), but those particles can be prone to escape, which can cool the plasma and halt the entire process.
That's why the team focused on generating smaller, lower-energy particles, which could maintain the fusion process in a more manageable way. They did this using ion cyclotron resonance heating (ICRH).
As Interesting Engineering explained, ICRH entails sending electromagnetic waves into plasma at "the specific frequency at which helium-3 ions naturally orbit around the magnetic field lines" in order to help the particles absorb energy.
"This is similar to pushing a child on a swing: to be effective, each push must be precisely in tune with the swing's natural frequency — in other words, it must be in resonance," the scientists wrote in their press release. "This is the first time that high-energy helium-3 ions have been produced in a stellarator using ion cyclotron resonance heating (ICRH): a world first in fusion research."
Researchers highlighted how the findings will also help them better understand how the sun works, as these same resonance processes used at W7-X may occur in nature.
"These findings show that fusion science is not only shaping the future, but also helping to unlock the mysteries of the cosmos around us," the press release concluded.
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Scientific American
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- Scientific American
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On supporting science journalism If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today. And the latest Wendelstein result, while promising, has now been countered by British researchers. They say the large Joint European Torus (JET) fusion reactor near Oxford, England, achieved even longer containment times of up to 60 seconds in final experiments before its retirement in December 2023. These results have been kept quiet until now but are due to be published in a scientific journal soon. According to a press release from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics in Germany, the as yet unpublished data make the Wendelstein and JET reactors 'joint leaders' in the scientific quest to continually operate a fusion reactor at extremely high temperatures. 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Yahoo
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Humans hurled massive mammoth tusk boomerangs 40,000 years ago
Boomerangs are some of humanity's oldest tools. In the northernmost region of Australia, 50,000-year-old cave art appears to depict Indigenous hunters throwing the weapons at prey, including kangaroos. While most associated with Australia, boomerangs are also documented around the world. One famous example was discovered in an ancient cave in southern Poland in 1985. Instead of using wood, these Early Upper Paleolithic ancestors crafted their tool from a mammoth tusk. And according to recent radiocarbon reevaluations and Bayseian probability modeling, researchers now believe the ivory weapon is even older than previously estimated. Their findings are detailed in a study published in the journal PLOS One. The conclusion comes after an international research team reviewed artifacts recovered from Obłazowa Cave, one of Poland's most important Paleolithic sites. Originally identified in 1985, Obłazowa Cave contains evidence of both Neanderthal and human activity spanning at least ten eras. Some of the most important finds relate to Homo sapiens who occupied the cave roughly 30,000 years ago. These included animal bone pendants, a potential whistle made from a snail shell, and human remains. Archaeologists at the time also unearthed a mammoth tusk boomerang estimated to date back to the same era. For nearly three decades, that specimen offered the tool's oldest known example in Europe. But after careful reexamination using more accurate radiocarbon dating methods, the boomerang's origin is likely closer to 40,000 years ago. As Interesting Engineering explains, the revised age can help researchers better contextualize an important time during the Upper Paleolithic known as the Early Aurignacian, when humans began migrating across Europe in large numbers. Even that long ago, archaeological evidence clearly shows Homo sapiens already engaging in creative, complex, and symbolic projects. These included the manufacturing of refined tools, decorative adornments and jewelry, as well as participating in elaborate ritualistic burials. At about 2.36 feet wide, the ivory boomerang wasn't designed to arc through the air and return to its user. Instead, hunters almost certainly intended the hefty weapon to accurately smack into their prey and kill it—or at least stun a creature long enough for them to close in on the target. 'From an economic perspective, creating and transporting a sizable object like the boomerang represents a unique commitment,' they wrote. 'The intentional thinning of the mammoth tusk to achieve symmetry reflects a notable investment in a context where mobility was essential. Since no ivory fragments were found at the site, the boomerang must have been crafted elsewhere and carried to Obłazowa Cave, underscoring its special status.' According to archaeologists, their latest research not only furthers their understanding of early human adaptive strategies, but highlights 'the nuanced interplay of technology, symbolism, and environmental interaction during the earliest phases of human dispersals in Central Europe.'While experts have previously confirmed the use of boomerangs at various locations including Australia, Central Europe, North Africa, and ancient Egypt, the tools were by no means ubiquitous across all cultures. This means that evidence of the weapons—let alone those carved from mammoth tusks—can serve as vital sources of information on human societal evolution.
