The process consists of fusing nuclei rather than splitting a nucleus as happens in ordinary nuclear-fission power plants. In a fission reaction, the nucleus of a uranium atom is split into two smaller atoms, releasing energy in the form of heat. The heat is used to make steam, which drives a turbine and generates electricity. In fusion energy, the second half of this process (heat makes steam makes electricity) remains the same. But instead of splitting the nucleus of an atom, you’re trying to force a deuterium nucleus to merge, or fuse, with a tritium nucleus. When that happens, you produce helium and throw off energy. Currently scientists at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) are trying to create a tiny pellet that will contain a few milligrams of deuterium and tritium, isotopes of hydrogen that can be extracted from water. If you blast the pellet with a powerful laser, you can create a reaction like the one that takes place at the center of the sun. Harness that reaction, and you’ve created a star on earth, and with the heat from that star you can generate electricity without creating any pollution. Scientists have been trying to produce energy with fusion for decades. So far, they keep failing. It’s not that fusion itself can’t be achieved. Fusion takes place in every hydrogen-bomb explosion. The trick is controlling fusion so that instead of a one-time blast you get a series of tiny, controllable explosions. The product that NIF is trying to build is called Laser Inertial Fusion Energy LIFE). If successful LIFE would produce energy with no carbon emissions, from a fuel that is cheap and abundant