World's largest laser fires up for attempt to build new star on Earth

SCIENTISTS are using the world's largest laser in an attempt to build a star on Earth.

The laser at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is roughly the size of three American football fields, and those in charge of it aren't joking when they say they'll create a tiny sun in the next few months.

It's called the National Ignition Facility and it's all about finding the holy grail of energy production - nuclear fusion - a high-energy reaction that would theoretically provide limitless energy for humanity.

In a nutshell, the laboratory hopes to split its laser beam up into 192 beams, then fire them at a tiny target wrapped in gold that's smaller than a fingernail.

http://www.news.com.au/technology/worlds-largest-laser-fires-up-for-attempt-to-build-new-star-on-earth/story-e6frfro0-1225859764407