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The US has finished constructing a huge physics experiment aimed at recreating conditions at the heart of our Sun.

The US National Ignition Facility is designed to demonstrate the feasibility of nuclear fusion, a process that could offer abundant clean energy.

The lab will kick-start the reaction by focusing 192 giant laser beams on a tiny pellet of hydrogen fuel.

HOW TO MAKE A STAR ON EARTH
SOHO image of the Sun (Esa/Nasa)
A pea-sized spherical capsule is filled with fusion fuel
This comprises a 150-microgram mix of deuterium and tritium
The NIF laser set-up pulses for 20 billionths of a second
For that time, it generates about 500 trillion watts
That's equivalent to five million million 100-watt light bulbs
All the laser power is focused on to the capsule's surface
The fuel is compressed to a density 100 times that of lead
It is heated to more than 100 million degrees Celsius
Under these extreme conditions, fusion is initiated
FROM THE BBC WORLD SERVICE

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