The Star Builders
Nuclear Fusion and the Race to Power the Planet
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- 3,99 €
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- 3,99 €
Descrizione dell’editore
Is it possible to build a star on earth?
When asked what problem he hoped scientists will have solved by the end of the century, Professor Stephen Hawking replied 'I would like nuclear fusion to become a practical power source. It would provide an inexhaustible supply of energy, without pollution or global warming.' But what is nuclear fusion, and could it really be the answer to the climate emergency? Fusion exists already in the stars that fill our universe with light, but can we harness that power here on earth? This is the question The Star Builders seeks to answer.
In his compelling new book, Dr Arthur Turrell makes the case for cutting-edge new techniques in nuclear energy - innovations that would allow us to recreate the power of the stars on our own planet. Filled with the remarkable stories of the scientists and entrepreneurs who have dedicated their lives to a seemingly impossible dream, The Star Builders is an unmissable insight into the future of life - and space - on our planet.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In an impressively reported debut, plasma physicist Turrell surveys the global development of nuclear fusion as an energy source. The idea of harnessing the power of stars on Earth has for decades, Turrell writes, "captivated scientists, governments, billionaires, entrepreneurs, celebrities, a pornography magnate, and even a few dictators." He details competing efforts to arrive at nuclear fusion—a process whereby the nuclei of atoms are combined at extreme temperatures and pressures to produce energy with less radioactive waste than fission—among them the American government-funded National Ignition Facility, with the "world's biggest and highest energy laser"; the Joint European Torus in the U.K.; and programs in Germany and China, plus a slew of start-ups. Turrell shares in the hope of the scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs who are sure that fusion will be able to produce a large portion of the planet's energy in the relatively near future, allowing for a switch from fossil fuels. Though the subject matter is complex, interviews with key players and accessible descriptions keep things moving along. Readers will find plenty of answers—and optimism—about the future of fusion here.