This requires very symmetric illumination and a stable hydrodynamic implosion. This project is part of a DOE program in the Plasma Physics Division where a new 5MJ laser facility with the worlds most uniform high powered laser has recently been brought on line. The results of experiments on that facility will be used to benchmark the codes and provide more confidence in pellet designs. A major research effort is underway to exploit Massively Parallel Processing in developing a better understanding of the sun's behavior. The range of scales necessary to model the sun spans several orders of magnitude requiring very large 3D numerical simulation codes using spectral, finite volume, and particle techniques developed to run on massively parallel computer systems.
Solar activity is the underlying driver for many of the important phenomena in space physics.
The answers to these and other questions will help develop a predictive capability of phenomena having a direct impact on earth. Advanced computer models allow studies of perturbations well into the nonlinear regime.