i read about a news stating Chinese scientists working on a project 'ARTIFICIAL SUN' to generate electricity

Question

What is the status of that project?

Is it possible to create conditions in outer space to form a sun like star.[not tht big like SUN]

Answer 1

I think you're talking about their Fusion Reactor experiments. They're trying it, we are, the Russians, the French - if we can get a sustainable fusion reaction going, that's cheap, clean, energy... (well, maybe not cheap, but clean...) I don't think they've progressed much further than we have; we've built a 50-foot core trying to house the reaction, but so far, we haven't been able to get more energy OUT than we've put IN.

The problem with an 'artificial sun' in space (a whole different topic here), is you NEED heat and pressure to sustain the reaction. Jupiter generates more heat than it takes in from the sun - and it's NOT fusing it's material. So... a man-made star, for the foreseeable future, is out of the question (I believe, anyway...).

Answer 2

This is called Nuclear Fusion. In the sun this is the process which turns hydrogen atoms into helium atoms, creating a huge amount of energy in the process, and that energy keeps us on the earth very warm and happy. :)

We are already able to create nuclear fusion, but we currently dont know how to make it sustained. Sustained meaning that we just turn it on and its own power output has enough energy to keep itself reacting and has some left over that we can use. There are a bunch of different ways that we are trying to accomplish this and a lot of different countries are working on the problem.

Fusion power, particularly Cold Fusion has been "Just around the corner" for the last 40 years, but its clearly very tricky technology. Hopefully it'll be perfected soon. :)

Answer 3

So, the Chinese are trying to make a self-sustaining fusion reactor, too? Shoot, we've been trying to do that here in the U.S. since before I was in college in the early 1970s. And we've still not succeeded -- it still requires more energy to get it started than we get back out. And If the Chinese are only getting started now, then they're 40 years behind us . . .

For your second question, the answer must be yes, since there are so many stars out there, but it takes immense quantities of hydrogen to do it -- more than we could generate here on earth.

Answer 4

sure chinese scientists may build something like that but rest assured that us scientists will build some 100 years earlier. so the project will be atleast 100 years in the future.

Answer 5

believe the russians suggested it first,involved putting a mirror into space to direct sunlight onto a part of the planet 24hrs a day.everyone thought they were mad.but maybe the chinese are madder,but then again why not give it a try.