The EAST tokamak (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak), often called China’s “artificial sun,” has reached a major milestone by sustaining plasma for 1,066 seconds (around 17 minutes and 46 seconds). This sets a new world record for plasma confinement in a standard tokamak, surpassing EAST’s own 2023 record of 403 seconds.
Replicating the Sun
The goal of the artificial sun is to replicate stellar nuclear fusion, offering a nearly limitless and clean energy source, with designs for reactors that avoid radioactive fuel. Plasma confinement is a key first step toward practical fusion power, which requires extreme temperatures over 100 million degrees Celsius, long-term stability, and precise control.
“A fusion device must maintain stable and efficient operation for thousands of seconds to sustain plasma on its own, a crucial step for generating continuous power in future fusion plants,” said Professor Yuntao Song of the Hefei Institute of Physical Sciences.
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