Regarding Energy sources based off of Solar power

[Esoptros]

Today, I've noticed that we are starting to use more and more solar panels for a source of "clean" energy, taking this energy directly from the solar rays of the sun.

 

My question is, and while I probably am not as smart as many people in here, if it was possible to recreate a miniature replica of the sun itself on earth [somewhere along the size of a baseball] and use that for energy?

 

Is creating a miniaturized replica of the sun even physically possible? And if it is possible, would a baseball-sized sun produce enough power to support our ever-growing advancements in technology, powering out cities?

 

[i have no idea what place to put this in [i am new here as well].

[mathematic]

Controlled fusion programs are sort of what you are asking about.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_fusion

[Esoptros]

So, solar energy is basically the result of Nuclear fusion at the core of the sun?

[swansont]

So, solar energy is basically the result of Nuclear fusion at the core of the sun?

 

Yes.

[John Cuthber]

A baseball sized lump of stuff from the middle of the sun wouldn't be much use. (Even if you could keep it hot enough and dense enough to maintain the fusion reaction.)

The rate of heat production in the sun has been compared to that of a compost heap.

The only reason it produces a lot of heat is that it's really big.

So the challenge is not just to replicate the sun, but to do a lot better.

Solar panels are a whole lot easier.

[swansont]

So the challenge is not just to replicate the sun, but to do a lot better.

 

Yes. The discussion of the push to just get fusion to work typically ignores the question of how do you harness the energy. The sun gives us a bunch of light in a spectrum that we can capture with some efficiency, because the nuclear interactions have been "processed" and what we're seeing is a thermal source. That "processing" is not going to be present in laboratory-scale fusion, and will be one of the parts to engineer if there ever is a transition from lab to commercial fusion.