Launch Date of the World’s First Thermonuclear Reactor Announced

The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) being built in France is a joint project involving scientists from the EU, USA, Russia, India, South Korea and Japan. The construction of the facility launched twelve years ago will be completed only in 2025.

The experimental thermonuclear fusion reactor is not yet completed, but it is already rightfully considered to be a unique facility: the reactor will be able to generate an enormous amount of electricity without damaging the environment. The launch of the reactor is likely to revolutionize the energy industry.

Recently, the main elements of the reactor cladding arrived at the construction site from India, and the project participants announced the date for the first plasma as December 2025. The substance temperature should be 150 million degrees Centigrade, which is hotter than the temperature in the center of the sun.

The total cost of implementing the ambitious idea will come to about $20-30 billion putting ITER on a par with American space mission Apollo, the only project that had a higher cost.

The reactor will be a huge facility: its central part alone will take up 60 meters and weigh 23,000 tons. It will take at least 10 years from the launch date before the device can be operated at full capacity.