115 Annie Kritcher: It Wasn’t The Plan, But It Worked

In this episode of Aarna’s News, host Aarna Sahu sits down with Dr. Annie Kritcher, one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2023 and a global leader in nuclear engineering and fusion energy. Annie led the world’s first successful fusion ignition and target gain experiment, a historic breakthrough in the race for clean, sustainable energy. She shares her journey from earning her Ph.D. at UC Berkeley to making headlines for her work at the National Ignition Facility, along with the challenges she faced as a woman in a male-dominated STEM field. If you're passionate about women in STEM, scientific innovation, or the future of fusion power, this episode is a must-listen.