FPN09-55

House Science Committee Fusion Hearing

October 29, 2009

The U. S. House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology, Subcommittee on Energy and Environment, held a hearing on "The Next Generation of Fusion Energy Research" on the morning of October 29. Information on the hearing is posted at:

http://science.house.gov/publications/hearings_markups_details.aspx?NewsID=2653

A link on the right hand side labled "Webcast" provides the actual webcast. Links on the left side provide the written testimonies provided by the Subcommittee chair, Brian Baird (D-WA) and the witnesses.

In general, it was a friendly hearing. The witnesses and the Congressmen discussed the advantages and motivations of fusion research, the need to initiate activities on the engineering aspects of fusion that would be needed for a fusion power plant, the timeframe for fusion relative to nearer-term energy sources, the expectations for igntion from the National Ignition Facility, U.S. support for ITER, the decline of the U.S. fusion effort relative to other countries over the past few decades, and other topics.

The witnesses (see photo) were:

Edmund Synakowski, Associate Director for Fusion Energy Sciences, DOE Office of Science
Stewart Prager, Director, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
Thom Mason, Director, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Riccardo Betti, Assistant Director, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, University of Rochester
Raymond J. Fonck, Professor of Engineering Physics, University of Wisconsin