How much power can we get out of fusion?

Fusion could be the most sustainable source of energy in the future. But how much can we get out of it?

16 March 2020

Presented by Phil Sansom.

Production by Phil Sansom.

FUSION.jpg

radioactivity symbol overlaid on the sun

Credit:

CC0 via Pixabay

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Listener Steve got in touch to ask: "With the advent of fusion power apparently only being 20 years away and the construction of commercial prototypes to start soon. How much do we expect to get out of this energy wise for what we put in, is it twice as much out or 1000 times as much out? And is it also true that nobody has managed to get out more than they’ve put in to date?". We got in touch with Prof Steven Cowley, Director of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) to find out.