Dallas 12-year-old boy may have set a world record after creating reactor and achieving nuclear fusion at home

A 12-year-old schoolboy has his sights set on a Guinness World Record after building his own nuclear fusion machine, after starting the ambitious project when he was just eight.

At an age when most of us were sitting around watching cartoons and playing video games, Aiden McMillan was thinking bigger. 

He was just eight years old when he developed a keen interest in nuclear fusion, and spent the next four years diligently working away to create his very own nuclear fusion machine.

And now it could earn him a spot in the record books.

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The 12-year-old spent four years building his nuclear fusion machine

McMillian, who is a seventh-grader at the Dallas Independent School District, spent two years researching the concepts of nuclear physics before deciding to have a go at building his own machine. 

He then spent the next couple of years working on a prototype machine, both at home at the local nonprofit makerspace Launchpad. 

As you might imagine, his mom had some concerns about him building a nuclear reactor out of his bedroom. 

“There were some alarm bells with my mom, yes, she was like, ‘ Whoa, whoa, whoa, take a step back, tell me exactly what could go wrong, and how it could go wrong and make sure it doesn’t go wrong,'” McMillan told NBC News. 

We can’t say we blame her. 

However, he ploughed ahead with the project and four years after his interest in nuclear fusion was piqued, he had created a fully operational machine. 

“We got neutrons, yeah!” McMillan said. 

“[I was] kind of tearing up about it cause it was like, hard to describe. It was like the end of a long, long journey.”

McMillan is hoping that all his hard work will pay off in the form of a Guinness World Record – the current record is held by Jackson Oswalt, who was 12 years, 355 days old when he achieved nuclear fusion with his homemade machine.

Does anyone else suddenly feel like a massive underachiever?

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The current record holder ended up getting a visit from the FBI

Current record holder Oswalt was just days away from his 13th birthday when he achieved nuclear fusion in his bedroom – and his feat wasn’t just recognized by the Guiness World Records. 

His impressive feat garnered attention from the media, and also a visit from the FBI. 

Agents turned up with a Geiger counter to check Oswalt’s home for radiation.

They checked the room for any signs of leaks or contamination and confirmed the project was safe, with Jackson later joking that ‘fortunately, I remained a free man’.

The agents reportedly told the family there were no violations and that the experiment, while surprising, was under control.

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