Image of the week
First coil heads to sea
2 Mar 2020
ITER's first toroidal field coil is about to embark on a month-long voyage from the port of Kobe, Japan, to Fos-sur-Mer, France. Component and packaging together weigh nearly 500 tonnes.
A heart of niobium-tin and copper, a case of stainless steel as much as 12 centimetres thick, and a sturdy transport frame—ITER's first D-shaped toroidal field coil represents a major load to be handled and transported. The component left Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (Futami Port) on 29 February for transfer by barge to the port of Kobe.
It will be transferred by crane to an oceangoing vessel—the well-named UHL Fusion—this week. Shipping is expected to take approximately one month.