Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 03, 2025

China’s 'Artificial Sun’ Runs Five Times Hotter Than ‘Original’ in Quest For Clean Fusion Energy

China’s 'Artificial Sun’ Runs Five Times Hotter Than ‘Original’ in Quest For Clean Fusion Energy

Last year, China’s nuclear fusion reactor set a new world record for superheated plasma time in a “breakthrough” hailed as yet another step towards achieving clean, sustainable electricity generation.

The Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), China’s nuclear fusion device known as an “artificial sun”, has set a new record for sustained high temperatures, according to Xinhua News Agency.
The simulation in Hefei ran for 1,056 seconds (17 minutes, 36 seconds) at 70 million degrees – five times hotter than the actual sun, which hits about 15 million degrees in its core.

EAST, designed and developed by Chinese scientists, has been used since 2006 to conduct fusion-related experiments mimicking the atom-building process that occurs at the center of stars and gives them their luminosity and warmth. It does so by applying powerful magnetic fields to hydrogen to compress it until it creates a plasma that can reach temperatures of over 150 million degrees Celsius and generate enormous energy.

Scientists hope to harness the power of nuclear fusion to deliver near-limitless clean energy. Unlike the nuclear fission process that powers commercial nuclear energy production, nuclear fusion requires no fossil fuels and does not leave behind hazardous radioactive waste materials.

“The recent operation lays a solid scientific and experimental foundation towards the running of a fusion reactor,” Gong Xianzu, a researcher at the Institute of Plasma Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences who led the latest experiment, was cited as saying.


EAST will continue to run the experiment at the Hefei Institute of Physical Science in the eastern province of Anhui until June.

Institute of Plasma Physics director Song Yuntao was cited as saying:

“[The experiment] once again challenged the world record. We have comprehensively validated the technology, driving it a major step forward from basic research to engineering applications.”


He added that five years from now, the scientists hoped to start building their fusion reactor, which may take approximately ten years.

“After that is built we will construct the power generator and start generating power by around 2040,” he added.

The “artificial sun” had achieved another milestone in May 2021, running at a plasma (hot gas) temperature of 120 million degrees Celsius for 101 seconds.

Then for another 20 seconds it reached a peak temperature of 160 million degrees Celsius –over 10 times hotter than the Sun, according to the outlet.

Despite the breakthroughs achieves by EAST, one of three major tokamaks in operation in China, nuclear fusion remains decades away from being used outside of a lab. The principal challenges are maintaining the temperature over 100 million degrees and operating at a stable level for a long time, according to Xinhua.

FILE PHOTO: General view of the circular bioshield inside the construction site of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in Saint-Paul-lez-Durance, southern France, November 7, 2019.


Similar efforts are currently underway in other countries. China, alongside another 35 countries, is participating in the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) megaproject in Marseille, France. ITER is touted as potentially being the world’s largest reactor once completed.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Dutch government falls as far-right leader Wilders quits coalition
Harvard Urges US to Unfreeze Funds for Public Health Research
Businessman Mauled by Lion at Luxury Namibian Lodge
Researchers Consider New Destinations Beyond the U.S.
53-Year-Old Doctor Claims Biological Age of 23
Trump Struggles to Secure Trade Deals With China and Europe
Russia to Return 6,000 Corpses Under Ukraine Prisoner Swap Deal
Microsoft Lays Off Hundreds More Amid Restructuring
Harvey Weinstein’s Publicist Embraces Notoriety
Macron and Meloni Seek Unity Despite Tensions
Trump Administration Accused of Obstructing Deportation Cases
Newark Mayor Sues Over Arrest at Immigration Facility
Center-Left Candidate Projected to Win South Korean Presidency
Trump’s Tariffs Predicted to Stall Global Economic Growth
South Korea’s President-Elect Expected to Take Softer Line on Trump and North Korea
Trump’s China Strategy Remains a Geopolitical Puzzle
Ukraine Executes Long-Range Drone Strikes on Russian Airbases
Conservative Karol Nawrocki wins Poland’s presidential election
Study Identifies Potential Radicalization Risk Among Over One Million Muslims in Germany
Good news: Annalena Baerbock Elected President of the UN General Assembly
Apple Appeals EU Law Over User Data Sharing Requirements
South Africa: "First Black Bank" Collapses after Being Looted by Owners
Poland will now withdraw from the EU migration pact after pro-Trump nationalist wins Election
"That's Disgusting, Don’t Say It Again": The Trump Joke That Made the President Boil
Trump Cancels NASA Nominee Over Democratic Donations
Paris Saint-Germain's Greatest Triumph Is Football’s Lowest Point
OnlyFans for Sale: From Lockdown Lifeline to Eight-Billion-Dollar Empire
Mayor’s Security Officer Implicated | Shocking New Details Emerge in NYC Kidnapping Case
Hegseth Warns of Potential Chinese Military Action Against Taiwan
OPEC+ Agrees to Increase Oil Output for Third Consecutive Month
Jamie Dimon Warns U.S. Bond Market Faces Pressure from Rising Debt
Turkey Detains Istanbul Officials Amid Anti-Corruption Crackdown
Taylor Swift Gains Ownership of Her First Six Albums
Bangkok Ranked World's Top City for Remote Work in 2025
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
Russia's Fossil Fuel Revenues Approach €900 Billion Since Ukraine Invasion
U.S. Justice Department Reduces American Bar Association's Role in Judicial Nominations
U.S. Department of Energy Unveils 'Doudna' Supercomputer to Advance AI Research
U.S. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Binance Amid Regulatory Shift
Alcohol Industry Faces Increased Scrutiny Amid Health Concerns
×