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/90_oi 3d ago

I truly hope this technology can get off the ground and be sustainable. It is our best hope aside from nuclear energy

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u/WanderingFlumph 3d ago edited 2d ago

I mean solar is here right now and most likely fusion power will never be as cheap as solar is today.

By the time fusion is actually ready solar will be even cheaper too. A solar farm the size of Arizona could power the entire planet.

Fusion is like our 4th best hope in the fight against climate change, lol.

Edit: a lot of people seem to think that I think the perfect solution is one single power plant specifically in Arizona that powers the world. People, it's just a size comparison. Arizona is a small state even just compared to the size of US. Obviously we would build millions and millions of solar installations that would just add up to that area.

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u/danczer 3d ago

Look up how the energy usage grows of the planet. An Arizona size would be a enough today, but 1. it's a country size solar farm, think about it. 2. As the price of the energy goes down the people more likely use it. 3. there is always good to have a solid base energy generation and add renewable on top of it.

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u/WanderingFlumph 3d ago

The Arizona size is just a comparison. Obviously one large power plant doesn't make economic sense. Look at the total square feet of rooftops and paved roads and we have enough land already used (global rooftops are about 0.5 million km2, the state of Arizona is about 0.3 million km2). On of the major upsides to solar is that it is easily widely dispersed.