One of the world’s most powerful magnets is the Central Solenoid of the megaproject ITER. It will be as tall as a six-story building, can lift

This Magnet Can Lift an Aircraft Carrier And Will Attempt Nuclear Fusion

submited by

Style Pass

2021-06-16 00:00:08

One of the world’s most powerful magnets is the Central Solenoid of the megaproject ITER. It will be as tall as a six-story building, can lift an aircraft carrier, and is designed to play a central role in an upcoming experiment that might just provide humanity with the means to produce limitless energy without harming the planet.

The first module of the Central Solenoid is now embarking on a long journey from California to France this week, according to a joint announcement on Tuesday from ITER and General Atomics, a company that invested a decade into its design and fabrication. There, it will be integrated into ITER—an unprecedented machine named after the Latin word for “the way”—that aims to pioneer nuclear fusion, a long-sought form of carbon-free energy akin to a “Sun on Earth.”

The module will be loaded into a special 24-axle transport vehicle that will drive only at night due to its sheer size until it reaches the coast of Texas, where it will be placed on a ship due to arrive in Marseilles, France, in late August.