Major nuclear fusion milestone reached as ‘ignition’ triggered in a lab

Re:Major nuclear fusion milestone reached as ‘ignition’ trig... by mcguire on Tuesday October 12, 2021 @02:43PM (#28843438)

"But nuclear is reliable and doesn't need this "natural gas assist". Even if a hurricane sweeps over an area, the nuclear power plants will keep working."

Actually, they don't.

"As a precaution measure, the reactor shall be shut down at least two hours before the hurricane’s strong winds arrive at the location. Generally this happens when the speed reaches between 70 and 75 mph (between 113 and 121 km/h)." (https://www.foronuclear.org/en/nuclear-power/questions-and-a...)

Also, they need electrical power to keep the reactor cool---typically the power grid and co-located diesel generators, not necessarily the best redundant backup system.

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Re:Major nuclear fusion milestone reached as ‘ignition’ trig... by mechanical_bear on Tuesday October 12, 2021 @03:16PM (#28843865)

It’s only the older designs that need active cooling.

https://www.technologyreview.com/2019/02/27/136920/the-new-s...

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Re:Major nuclear fusion milestone reached as ‘ignition’ trig... by Aeolun on Tuesday October 12, 2021 @03:19PM (#28843885)

Given how long it took Fukushima to cool down, does this actually do anything appreciable in the two hours before arrival?

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Re:Major nuclear fusion milestone reached as ‘ignition’ trig... by mcguire on Wednesday October 13, 2021 @01:55PM (#28855309)

I believe it means that, 2 hours before arrival, the reactor is off. Dead. Not generating heat.

They'd need to start shutdown sometime before that.

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