The trouble with bubbles

Controlling a boiling plasma at several million degrees Celsius - that's the challenge of nuclear fusion, our great energy hope for the future. Two research project advance the state of knowledge in the domain. If plasmas can be controlled, then it may one day be possible to use nuclear fusion as an energy source. As in stars, however, this ultra-hot material is constantly boiling, which makes it hard to control in a reactor. Instabilities in the plasma create bubble-like "blobs" that, upon bursting, can damage the internal walls of the reactor. Scientists are trying to find ways to stabilize plasmas from the inner core out to the surface. Two CRPP teams have recently made progress in this area by improving our understanding of these instabilities.