China’s ‘Artificial Sun’ sets new record: Sustains 100-million-degree heat for 18 minutes

China has conducted another significant nuclear fusion experiment to develop a new energy source. According to a report in Live Science, citing Chinese media reports, China’s ‘artificial sun’, the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) fusion energy reactor, maintained plasma for an incredible 1,000 seconds, surpassing the 403-second record it set in 2023.

Scientists have been trying to develop nuclear fusion for energy needs, but maintaining long-term operation and attaining temperatures above 100 million degrees Celsius have proven difficult. Nonetheless, scientists think that stabilising the system for 1,000 seconds has made a significant technological advancement.

“A fusion device must achieve stable operation at high efficiency for thousands of seconds to enable the self-sustaining circulation of plasma, which is critical for the continuous power generation of future fusion plants,” Song Yuntao, director of the Institute of Plasma Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told Chinese state media.

“We hope to expand international collaboration via EAST and bring fusion energy into practical use for humanity,” added Mr Song.

The nuclear reactor has not yet reached the ignition point, where nuclear fusion produces its own energy and maintains the processes. The new record, though, is a positive step towards preserving long-lived, enclosed plasma loops that could fuel reactors in the future.

Plans for the Future and the Promise of Fusion The goal of China’s National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) is to develop an industrial fusion reactor prototype by 2035. By 2050, large-scale fusion technology should be commercially feasible.

Nuclear fusion produces energy by fusing hydrogen atoms at extremely high temperatures, simulating the Sun. Fusion has the potential to be a safe, clean, and almost infinite energy source if it is effective.