Go behind the scenes at the world’s largest nuclear fusion experiment

Huge in scale and ambition, ITER is a €20 billion energy project being built in the south of France that will pave the way for nuclear fusion power similar to the sun’s energy source.

The world’s largest nuclear fusion experiment was launched in 2006 by an international effort involving the European Union, the United States, China, and Russia. The reactor’s first operation, which will create an extremely hot substance called plasma (the conditions needed for nuclear fusion), is scheduled for 2020. The plan was initially postponed to 2025, and new delays have now pushed it to 2035.

Meanwhile, exclusive photos taken by Enrico Sacchetti offer a glimpse into ITER’s construction and potential.

The main image shows the 30-metre deep assembly pit for the tokamak – a device that uses magnetic fields to confine swirling plasma inside a doughnut-shaped torus – giving an idea of ​​its size: The above photo shows one of the toroidal coils that generate these magnetic fields.

The image below shows some of the nine sectors that make up the ITER vacuum vessel, which weighs 5,200 tonnes and acts as an extremely durable “cage” for the experiments, keeping the continuously swirling plasma from touching its walls.

The image above shows part of the vacuum vessel in transit for repair, while the photo below shows the supports that line the back of the blanket module’s wall, which protects the structure and magnets from the heat and high-energy neutrons of the reaction.