A Piece of the Sun

Our rapidly industrialising world has an insatiable hunger for energy, and conventional sources are struggling to meet demand. Oil is running out, coal is damaging our climate, many nations are abandoning nuclear, yet solar, wind and water will never be a complete replacement. The solution, says Daniel Clery in this deeply researched and revelatory book, is to be found in the original energy source: the Sun itself. There, at its centre, the fusion of 630 million tonnes of hydrogen every second generates an unfathomable amount of energy. By replicating even a tiny piece of the Sun's power on Earth, we could secure all the heat and energy we would ever need. Nuclear fusion scientists have pursued this simple yet extraordinary ambition for decades. Sceptics say it will never work but, as A Piece of the Sun makes clear, large-scale nuclear fusion is scientifically possible, and has many advantages over other options. Fusion is clean, green and virtually limitless, and Clery argues passionately and eloquently that the only thing keeping us from proving its worth is our politicians' shortsightedness. The world energy industry is worth trillions of dollars - divert just a tiny fraction of that into researching fusion and we would soon know if it is workable. Timely and authoritative, A Piece of the Sun is a rousing call-to-arms to seize this chance of avoiding the looming energy crisis.