The Chinese ‘artificial sun’ manages to generate stable plasma for more than 17 minutes

The EAST (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) thermonuclear fusion reactor, known as the “artificial sun” of Chinabroke its record by generating and maintaining highly confined and hot plasma for 1,066 seconds.

The EAST, located in the Chinese city of Hefei (east), managed to generate and maintain plasma for 1,066 seconds, more than 17 minutes, surpassing its previous record of 403 seconds, reached in 2023, the state agency Xinhua reported this Monday.

The agency calls this new record “a key step toward the development of a fusion reactor.”

The ultimate goal of EAST, located at the Institute of Plasma Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (ASIPP) in Hefei, is to create nuclear fusion like that of the sun, using abundant substances in the sea to provide a constant flow of clean energy.

Since its launch in 2006, EAST, designed and developed by China, has been “an open testing platform for Chinese and international scientists to conduct fusion-related experiments and research,” according to Xinhua.

According to scientist Song Yuntao, quoted by the agency, the temperature and density of the particles have increased considerably during this high-confinement plasma operation, which will lay “a solid foundation for improving the energy generation efficiency of future plants.” of fusion energy and reduce costs.