Measuring Extremes-Photo 1
A NIF cryo system operator installs a target with a drive hohlraum and VISAR (velocity interferometer system for any reflector) line-of-sight shielding cone to measure the extreme shock properties of deuterium. The target is kept within thermal shrouds, where it is cooled to about 400 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. At shot time, the shrouds open and NIF’s laser beams heat the target to about 4 million °F in a few billionths of a second.
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