New film on fusion research

Status and prospects of fusion research / a look into the year 2100

July 10, 2008
How will a fusion power plant work? Where does fusion research stand today? The new film, “Energy of the Future. Fusion 2100”, gives an entertaining and informative nine-minute account: A school class in 2100 re-enacts how the development of the fusion energy source proceeded. The film was made by Max Planck Institute of Plasma Physics (IPP) on behalf of EFDA (European Fusion Development Agreement) with funding from the European Union (script and direction: Herbert Hackl; production: Naumann Film, Munich).

The futuristic lesson is backed up with documentary photos and animations and gives the viewer an entertaining survey of the principles, development and status of fusion research. Like the sun, a fusion power plant is to derive energy from fusion of atomic nuclei. To ignite the fusion fire one has to succeed in confining the fuel, a hydrogen plasma, in magnetic fields and heating it to temperatures of over 100 million degrees. The next step in world-wide fusion research on the way to this almost inexhaustible energy source is the ITER international test reactor, construction of which is to begin next year at Cadarache, France.

The film is available in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish and can be viewed on the internet and downloaded free of charge.

Isabella Milch

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