Millions of data points, one successful lift

2026-07-28 - The sixth sector module (of nine) has officially "landed" in the tokamak pit.

2026-07-28 - Six sector modules are now in the ITER tokamak pit. Sector module #1 was installed in an overnight operation from 27 to 28 July 2026.

2026-07-27 - For every sector module lift operation he has participated in, ITER Sector Module Assembly Project Leader Nicolas Sapet has a sticker on his helmet. He is about to add "SM1," for sector module #1 (27-28 July 2026).

2026-07-27 - It's nearly midnight, and the installation operation is progressing well. The module will stay suspended 500 millimetres above its final landing position for a number of hours, while all final metrology checks are completed.

2026-07-27 - The descent of sector module #1 is monitored from a port cell.

2026-07-27 - The sector module and its rigging weigh nearly 1,400 tonnes.

2026-07-27 - The bridge cranes have brought tokamak sector module #1 into the exact position it needs to be in to begin its descent.

2026-07-27 - Part of the tokamak assembly team receives a briefing during a shift change before sector module #1 is lowered into the tokamak pit. The lift operation at ITER on 27-28 July mobilized more than 100 people.

2026-07-27 - Tokamak sector module #1 is approaching the tokamak pit. It will be installed across from the other five modules and is coming over the wall "backwards" (with its outboard edge first).

2026-07-27 - Sector module #1 leaves the sector sub-assembly tool and pivots into the orientation required to pass over the wall separating the Assembly Hall from the tokamak pit. Suspended beneath the crane, the sector module and rigging weigh nearly 1,400 tonnes.

2026-07-27 - The ITER assembly teams are transferring another tokamak sector module into the tokamak pit today. It will be the sixth (of nine) to be installed, completing two-thirds of the plasma chamber.

2026-07-22 - Director-General Pietro Barabaschi brings guests from Korea into the Tokamak Building to see where five sector modules—soon six—are positioned in the tokamak pit. From left to right: Kijung Jung, who was at the head of ITER Korea throughout the vacuum vessel project in Korea; Sung Soo Kim, Deputy-Minister, Korean Ministry of Science and ICT; and Hyukwoon Kwon, Korean Ambassador to France.

2026-07-22 - HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Vice President Kwangshik Won receives a commemorative plaque during the ITER Korean Fusion Day for his company's successful fabrication and delivery of four vacuum vessel sectors. The last Korean-built sector will be transferred from tooling to the tokamak pit next week.

2026-07-22 - ITER Korean Fusion Day takes place directly in front of the open doors of the Assembly Hall, revealing the staging and pre-assembly areas for ITER's largest components.