Writing by Dr. Dannielle Blumenthal

This Hanukkah, They Tried To Extinguish Our Light – They Failed.

Professor Nuno Loureiro didn’t just work on “clean energy”—he worked on energy independence.

For decades, the global economy has been tethered to petrostates like Iran.

When a nation’s power grid and industry depend on oil and gas from volatile regions, its foreign policy is never truly free.

Energy dependence provides leverage to regimes that use oil revenues to fund instability, while the rest of the world remains vulnerable to price shocks and supply “choke points.”

How Nuno’s work on Fusion changes the geopolitical map:

—Fuel from Seawater: Fusion uses isotopes of hydrogen (deuterium and tritium) found in water. This means energy is everywhere, not just buried under specific deserts.

—Breaking the “Petro-Lever”: If the world masters fusion, the demand for oil drops toward zero. The “oil weapon” wielded by regimes like Iran becomes obsolete.

—Total Sovereignty: Every country with a fusion plant becomes its own “energy island.” No more dependence on foreign pipelines or shipping lanes like the Strait of Hormuz.

While the loss of Nuno Loureiro is a significant blow to the physics community, his work was built on a foundation designed to survive him.

1. The SPARC Project: The Physical Legacy

Loureiro was a central leader in the SPARC project, a joint venture between MIT and the startup Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS).

• The Goal: SPARC is designed to be the first device in history to produce net energy (more power out than in).
• The Status: Construction is already well underway in Devens, Massachusetts. Because Loureiro helped finalize the theoretical “physics basis” for the machine before his death, the engineering teams have the “blueprint” they need to finish it. SPARC is still on track to begin operations in 2026.

1. His Theoretical “Code”: The Viriato Legacy

Loureiro didn’t just write papers; he and his team developed advanced computer codes, most notably one called Viriato.

• The Function: This code simulates how plasma moves and how magnetic fields “snap” and reconnect.
• How it continues: This software is used by researchers worldwide. His students and postdoctoral fellows at the Loureiro Group are continuing to refine these simulations, which act as a digital “manual” for future fusion reactors, ensuring the plasma stays stable and doesn’t damage the machine.

1. Leadership Transition at MIT

• Institutional Continuity: The Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC) houses hundreds of world-class scientists. While a permanent successor to Loureiro has not yet been named, the center is currently being led by its senior leadership team and the MIT Department of Physics.
• The Next Generation: Loureiro was an “enthusiastic mentor.” Dozens of his former students are now lead scientists at other fusion labs (like the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory) and at private fusion startups, carrying his theories into the commercial sector.

(Text/image: Gemini AI)