Despite staggering differences in mass and scale — the sun (left) is approximately 10^38 times more massive and 10^13 times larger — NIF implosions (right) are being used to recreate the conditions found in the deep interiors of stars so that they may be better understood.
Powerful lasers are used to create the high temperatures and pressures found inside stars 40 times more massive than the Sun,” reports Sky News about research co-authored by Dr. Carl Brune, Professor of Physics & Astronomy at Ohio University.
Scientists have, for the first time, recreated the extreme stellar plasma conditions of nuclear reactions found inside the hearts of stars.
Almost all of the heavier elements in the universe, including oxygen, are formed in nuclear reactions inside stars.
These reactions take place under incredibly high temperatures and pressures, making it nearly impossible for scientists to perform nuclear measurements in similar conditions – until now.
Experts in the fields of plasma physics, nuclear astrophysics and laser fusion have managed to perform experiments under just those conditions using incredibly powerful lasers.
Their experiments are the first thermonuclear measurements of nuclear reaction cross-sections, which help scientists measure the probability that a nuclear reaction will occur….
Read the rest of the story in Sky News.
Read more at “Brune, Alum Co-Author Paper on Probing Star-Like Conditions at National Ignition Facility.”
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