German W7-X fusion device produces first long-lived hydrogen plasma

http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archi.../index.xml

EXCERPT: Scientists and dignitaries from around the world watched as Merkel pushed the button to create a hydrogen plasma that lasted a quarter of a second. But that was long enough to begin heating the plasma to 80 million degrees Celsius. By 2020, the W7-X is designed to produce a plasma that lasts up to 30 minutes and would demonstrate that stellarators could be a model for the fusion power plants of the future....

This is great news. I never even heard of this method of harnessing energy. I hope they develop it further and it becomes a major substitute for coal and petroleum. Imagine a fusion powered car!

(Feb 11, 2016 08:22 PM)Magical Realist Wrote: This is great news. I never even heard of this method of harnessing energy. I hope they develop it further and it becomes a major substitute for coal and petroleum. Imagine a fusion powered car!

It seems like the only hope for a future filled with yet more billions of people achieving a higher standard of living and greater consumption of resources and energy.

"Here is the most popular meme: 'Germany now gets half of its energy from solar panels.' This does the rounds of Twitter and Facebook almost every day. In fact, it has now spread to more reputable outlets such as Popular Mechanics, and has even appeared on the website of Richard Dawkins, the inventor of the term meme, under the headline 'Germany Now Produces Half Of Its Energy Using Solar.' The problem, of course, is that Germany does not get half of its energy from solar panels, and will not do so any time soon." http://www.theenergycollective.com/rober...ergy-solar