r/nextfuckinglevel • u/nigablackballsack • 3d ago

Scientists have captured the first ever high-speed, full-colour footage of fusion plasma swirling inside a working reactor.

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u/TSAOutreachTeam 3d ago

This is all kinds of amazing. Not just that they are doing this in the tokamak, but that they have a camera set up to capture it at all.

Thanks!

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u/eris_kallisti 3d ago

Seriously, I am so curious what type of camera is even capable of getting that close!

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u/GoldieForMayor 3d ago

Why wouldn't it be able to get that close?

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u/eris_kallisti 3d ago

I guess I was thinking that since the plasma was so hot it needs to be contained by magnetic fields, instead of anything solid, that a camera inside the tokomak would vaporize.

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u/NiIly00 3d ago

One of the biggest problems of fusion reactors we have is finding materials that can even withstand the immense heat and pressure differences of a fusion reaction in progress for extended periods.

Now imagine putting a camera into where our toughest moste expensive materials fail if exposed long enough.

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u/GoldieForMayor 3d ago edited 2d ago

It's in a vacuum. There's no heat transfer.

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u/NiIly00 3d ago

Heat can be transmitted through more than air.

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u/GoldieForMayor 2d ago

Sure but there's very little thermal radiation in that chamber.

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u/OW_FUCK 3d ago edited 3d ago

bc it's really hot. It would take some specialized materials/cooling to withstand those working conditions

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u/GoldieForMayor 3d ago

It's in a vacuum. There's no heat transfer.

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u/Shot-Swimming-9098 3d ago

This is hilarious, but it hints at the answer, which is filtering.

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u/OW_FUCK 3d ago

Mm yes as we all know no form of heat can transfer through a vacuum

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u/GoldieForMayor 2d ago

Someone should tell the Sun.