Early success turned to disappointment. Even with the new laser cranked up to 11, the amount of fusion measured was orders of magnitude smaller than the amount of fusion expected. As the power went up, the way the pellet collapsed seemed to be increasingly sensitive to imperfections in its spherical shape. This resulted in material squirting out of the pellet rather than being crushed. This was a big problem, because making hydrogen ice of the correct density and shape is already difficult.
