Wow, Star Stuff in the Lab!

You read right, scientists at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, using the Linac Coherent Light Source - one of the most powerful X-Ray lasers on Earth have, as the article in Gizmodo writes:

• (have) made matter that you can only find in the heart of stars and giant planets.

In a recent experiment, scientists:

• fired the LCLS at a small cube of aluminum only 0.00039 inches on a side,  (creating)  a super-hot solid plasma burning at 3.6 million degrees Fahrenheit.

Solid plasma Doesn't that just blow your mind! And 3.6 million degrees is hotter that the surface of the sun!  As the article points out, it only lasted one trillionth of a second and 3.6 million degrees is still far below the 14 million degrees at the center of our own sun.  But they are saying that this experiment alone goes a long way towards understanding how a star works.  

full article here plus link to SLAC