Nuclear fusion mentioned in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam? A British scientist ruminates

Nuclear fusion is a reaction in which two or more atomic nuclei are combined to form one or more different atomic nuclei and subatomic particles. But was it mentioned in the ancient Hindu text— Śrīmad Bhāgavatam?

A British scientist says—Yes.

Her conclusion is based on canto 3.11.5 which says

TEXT 5

aṇur dvau paramāṇū syāt

trasareṇus trayaḥ smṛtaḥ

jālārka-raśmy-avagataḥ

kham evānupatann agāt

Recently in one of her social media posts Dr Melissa, a British scientist said:

“Reading Srimad Bhagwatam and trying my best to understand it. It’s so detailed and complex! It’s continually intriguing the scientist in me. E.g could Canto 3.11.5 be referring to the sun’s nuclear fusion reaction, spectral absorption lines and radioactive decay!?

Canto 3.11.5: “Division of gross time is calculated as: two atoms make one double atom, and three double atoms make one hexatom. This hexatom is visible in sunshine which enters through holes of a window screen. One can clearly see the hexatom goes up towards the sky”

Makes me think of deuterium, which forms from 2 hydrogen atoms to create a “double atom”. Combining with another hydrogen atom forms helium3, which then combines with another helium3 to form helium4 + 2 protons: 4 protons + 2 neutrons ie a “hexatom” Sun’s fusion reaction!

91% of the sun is hydrogen and most of the remaining 9% is helium4 The gamma photons created in this reaction are what light up our world ie “sunshine”! Could “holes of a window screen” refer to the C, F, G’, H and D lines of spectral absorption of hydrogen and helium?!

Could “hexatom goes up towards the sky” refer to how helium rises, like a balloon filled with helium?! Could “Division of gross time” refer to timescales on which the sun’s reactions happen, and particularly radioactive decay constants involved?!”

The sun as we know is a main-sequence star, and thus generates its energy by nuclear fusion of hydrogen nuclei into helium. In its core, the Sun fuses 500 million metric tons of hydrogen each second. Deuterium fusion, also called deuterium burning, is a nuclear fusion reaction that occurs in stars and some substellar objects, in which a deuterium nucleus and a proton combine to form a helium-3 nucleus. It occurs as the second stage of the proton–proton chain reaction, in which a deuterium nucleus formed from two protons fuses with another proton, but can also proceed from primordial deuterium.

Dr Melissa Kapoor is an Oxford trained Scientist and a devoted Hindu.

Recently Lockheed Martin R&D team had said–fusion energy is the future. In their opinion fusion energy is the ultimate form of renewable power. For scientists and engineers the sun is their inspiration because it is the biggest natural fusion reactor we know. So did our ancestors also use something similar?

The literal translation of Srimad bhagwatam 3.11.5 is

aṇur dvau paramāṇū syāt

trasareṇus trayaḥ smṛtaḥ

jālārka-raśmy-avagataḥ

kham evānupatann agāt

SYNONYMS

aṇuḥ—double atom; dvau—two; parama–aṇu—atoms; syāt—become; trasareṇuḥ—hexatom; trayaḥ—three; smṛtaḥ—considered; jāla–arka—of sunshine through the holes of a window screen; raśmi—by the rays; avagataḥ—can be known; kham eva—towards the sky; anupatan agāt—going up.