Amid the world’s efforts to replace fossil fuel with clean energy, France is all set to get the world’s most powerful magnet for a fusion reactor that will attempt to duplicate the process that powers the Sun.
According to The Associated Press, researchers at the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) debuted the first section of the magnet on Thursday after receiving it from its American maker. The magnet is 60 feet high and 14 feet broad, powerful enough to lift an aircraft carrier.
The Central Solenoid will play a critical role in ITER’s mission to establish fusion energy as it induces a powerful current in the ITER plasma, helping to shape and control the fusion reaction. It is said to be nearly 2,80,000 times stronger than the Earth’s magnetic field.
“Each completion of a major first-of-a-kind component — such as the central solenoid’s first module — increases our confidence that we can complete the complex engineering of the full machine,” said Laban Coblentz, spokesperson for ITER.
Scientists have long regarded nuclear fusion as a type of El Dorado. While it promises clean energy, which minimizes greenhouse gas emissions, the implementation is quite complex, and scientists must yield a reactor that generates more energy than it utilizes.
The ITER fusion reactor, on the other hand, is expected to be one of the major reactors ever built; this initiative has brought along itself a hope that the indescribable goal of nuclear fusion can be achieved.