A new round of nuclear fusion experiments for an advanced superconducting tokamak (EAST), or “Chinese artificial sun,” kicked off at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science this month, Xinhua News Agency reported on Tuesday. According to the institute’s vice director, Song Yuntao, the experiment is aimed at upgrading the EAST auxiliary heating system to make the artificial sun “hotter” and more “durable.” The testing is expected to last for a half year.
The EAST reactor was designed to replicate the nuclear fusion process carried out by the sun. Since it first became operational in 2006, the EAST has been an open test platform for Chinese and international scientists to conduct fusion-related experiments.