South Korea's KSTAR sustains plasma and reaches 100 million c
South Korea's KSTAR reactor just pulled off a big win in nuclear fusion.
It managed to keep super-hot plasma stable for over 100 seconds and reached 100 million degrees Celsius for 48 seconds.
These achievements are a solid step toward making fusion energy, a cleaner, more sustainable power source, a reality.
Tungsten divertor allowed longer, hotter runs
The secret sauce this time? A tungsten divertor, which can handle much more heat than older materials.
Thanks to this upgrade, scientists pushed the reactor to higher temperatures and longer runs, using magnetic fields to mimic the kind of fusion that powers stars.
KFE aims 300 seconds plasma runs
KFE is not stopping here: they are aiming to run plasma at these extreme temperatures for up to 300 seconds.
If they pull it off, we will be even closer to carbon-free electricity and tackling global energy challenges.