Of Interest archive

The world needs to mount a "COVID-scale" investment worth hundreds of billions of pounds in green technologies if it is to tackle global warming, the head of Britain's nuclear fusion program Ian Chapman warned in an interview with i News on 11 November.

Speaking ahead of a forum on fusion power at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, the chief executive of  the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) warned that global leaders have not yet fully grasped the urgency and importance of fully funding existing and emerging technologies such as fusion, carbon capture and next generation solar power to provide a full portfolio of green energy sources.

"There are all sorts of things that we should be investing hundreds of billions into and we're not. Globally, we are spending hundreds of billions this year on extracting fossil fuels. As a [global] society, we don't have our priorities in the right place. We should realize that this is an existential problem and deal with it in the same way that we have approached COVID-19, where we have invested heavily in the technology that it going to get us out of the crisis. If we treated climate change in the same way, of course we would deal with it quicker."

Chapman argues that fusion has the potential to replace gas and coal as the source of "base load" continuous energy production to supplement weather-dependent sources of green power.

See the full interview at iNews.

Image credit: KSTAR

On "Youth and Public Empowerment Day" at COP26, ITER and a group of global partners launch INFUSED—the International Fusion Education Initiative. The program curates quality fusion education materials and makes them available to interested students, educators and members of the public. Lectures, MOOCs, videos, virtual tours, games, DIY projects ... see all materials on this ITER webpage: https://www.iter.org/education/infused. 

The U.S. Fusion Outreach Team, a grassroots organization in the fusion community focused on reducing barriers to outreach efforts, has launched a new centralized website to engage an expanding workforce, media, educators, and the public in the journey toward a world powered by fusion energy.

Steffi Diem and Arturo Dominguez, co-leaders of the U.S. Fusion Outreach Team, are coordinating this effort. "We're excited to launch the U.S. Fusion Energy website to provide resources and up-to-date news on our field," said Dominguez. Diem also added, "We hope that this website will engage the public to be part of the fusion movement, recruit a diverse workforce and to provide a community for U.S. fusioneers."

To learn more, visit the website here.

Source: Phys.org

In the Action Hub amphitheatre at COP26, the ITER Organization was invited to present the status of fusion research—both in the south of France, where ITER is being assembled, and worldwide.

Follow the link below to take the Fusion World Tour as presented by Matteo Barbarino (IAEA), Aneeqa Khan (Research Fellow in Fusion at the University of Manchester and former Monaco-ITER Fellow), and Sabina Griffith (ITER Organization). 

Watch a replay of the 4 November 2021 event here. 

As part of Youth Day at United Nations Climate Change Conference, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) organized an event titled "Net Zero World: The Youth Perspective Today & The Future."

The second panel discussion programmed during the event focused on nuclear fusion's role in long-term sustainable energy and examined how international collaboration and innovation can be used to address technical and commercial challenges. "Nuclear Energy—Net Zero Beyond 2050" featured ITER Project Associate Nitendra Singh (nuclear safety engineer) and former Monaco-ITER Fellow Aneeqa Khan (current Research Fellow in Fusion at the University of Manchester, United Kingdom).

Watch a replay of the 5 November 2021 event here. (Forward to 1:14:15 for the start of the second panel discussion.) 

Each year the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) aims to appoint outstanding scientists or engineers who have recently completed a doctorate to a two-year research fellowship in any field of fusion research conducted at the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE). Candidates need to be highly motivated and show initiative.

The latest campaign is open for application through 17 December 2021. 

Applicants should possess a degree in physics, engineering, materials science or other relevant subject; a relevant PhD  (preferably in fusion research); a record of peer-reviewed publication in high-quality journals; a high degree of motivation and initiative; and good written and oral communication skills.

See all information on the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE/UKAEA) website.

--Photo credit: UKAEA

All seven levels of the ITER Tokamak Building are now covered in smooth and shiny white paint. 

In a nuclear building, the coating on the floors, walls and ceilings must present a perfectly smooth surface in order to be decontaminated in case of an incident or accident. 

European Domestic Agency contractors used approximately 150 tonnes of resin, primer and paint to transform the raw concrete surfaces of the building into a pristine jewel box. Work continues in the nearby Tritium Building, Site Services Building, and Radio Frequency Building. 

See a recent article on the Fusion for Energy website for more information.

FUSION-EP, organized with the support of the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, was created in 2006 to train the next generation of fusion physicists and engineers. Students spend two years studying advanced fusion science and technology to earn a Master of Science in Nuclear Fusion and Engineering Physics.

Applications for the 2022 academic year are opening soon—on 15 November—and will close on 31 January 2022. FUSION-EP also awards scholarships to top-ranked students to cover the participation fee and offers a monthly allowance for two years. And though Aix-Marseille Université is the coordinating institution, there are participating universities all across Europe where students can pursue the FUSION-EP degree.

To learn more about the program, visit the FUSION-EP site here. To apply, see the application page here.

The ITER Organization is organizing a virtual Open Doors Day on Wednesday, 27 October 2021.

The three-hour event will be offered in English (afternoon) and French (morning). "Visitors" who sign up through an on-line portal will have a chance to attend a general presentation on the ITER Project, take self-guided virtual visits through the main buildings on site, and browse through a virtual exhibition centre featuring some of ITER's manufacturing and construction partners.

A number of surprises are also planned ... think virtual reality, DIY, livestreams and we've even heard a rumour about a "plasmagician," but we have no more information at this time ... 

(Age recommendation: 7 and up). More than 1,000 people have signed up. Will you join them?

Follow the links to sign up in English or French.

Dimitri Ferrière, alias Monsieur Bidouille, is a French maker and well known scientific populizer on YouTube whose curiosity takes him from the exploration of topics as varied as perpetual motion and energy, to the internet, space, and the climate. 

Bidouiller, which can be loosely translated as "tinkering,'' "fiddling around to fix," or "creating," is at the centre of his interest in DIY, fablab and alternative solutions.

In September 2021, he released a 50-minute video on ITER, based on a three-day visit to the project site in Saint-Paul-lez-Durance in April 2021. The video reached 330,000 views the first week.

You can watch it (in French) on Monsieur Bidouille's YouTube channel here.

Join fellow fusion PhD candidates from all over Europe next month at the annual PhD Event organized by the European Fusion Education Network, FuseNet.

The event, held on line from 22 to 23 November 2021, will feature high-profile keynote speakers, a top-notch scientific program and the much anticipate PechaKucha contest, where students present their research in 20 slides, 20 seconds per slide. There will also be moments to "gather" thanks to creative on-line offerings through the event platform Gather.town.

Registration is open through 31 October 2021 here. See all information on the FuseNet website.

The ITER Organization is organizing a virtual Open Doors Day on Wednesday, 27 October 2021.

The three-hour event will be offered in English (afternoon) and French (morning). "Visitors" who sign up through an on-line portal will have a chance to attend a general presentation on the ITER Project, take self-guided virtual visits through the main buildings on site, and browse through a virtual exhibition centre featuring some of ITER's manufacturing and construction partners.

A number of surprises are also planned ... think virtual reality, DIY, livestreams and we've even heard a rumour about a "plasmagician," but we have no more information at this time ... 

(Age recommendation: 7 and up).

Follow the links to sign up in English or French.

Whether burning in a fuel cell or engine, or "fusing" in a tokamak, hydrogen will play a major role in clean energy production and consumption. In a recent article in the The European Files, ITER Director-General Bernard Bigot explores the potential benefits of a (near) future "hydrogen economy" that would include fusion as a "highly concentrated baseload energy source" and as a technology that could "produce clean hydrogen" to, among different uses, power transport vehicles.

"Like electricity, hydrogen is not a primary fuel," writes the ITER Director-General. It is produced using different energy sources, fossil fuels among them. Therefore, the environmental impact of this "grey hydrogen" is far from being neutral.

"To make the hydrogen economy truly green," he argues, "we will need a clean source of concentrated baseload energy." Hydrogen fusion has all the characteristics to fill that requirement.

Read the full article here.

The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), the European Space Agency (ESA), ITER and the Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) came together to host an online career event on 5 October 2021. The information session was designed to inform participants of the many diverse options available for engineers interested in science, technology and space. Four speakers represented the four organizations involved in the event:

Anna Cook from CERN

Elena Saenz from ESA

Deirdre Boilson from ITER

Maria Gracia Labarte from SKAO

These four representatives discussed not only what their organizations do, but also explained what the working culture is like and what they love about their jobs. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to apply, they agreed. Passion is most important.

Though the event was held via livestream, a recording is available on YouTube here.

The European Consortium for the Development of Fusion Energy, EUROfusion, is premiering a travelling exhibition on fusion energy that aims to be both educational and participatory.

Fusion, Power to the People, which opens on 8 October in Marseille, France, combines science, art and technology to make a complex topic accessible to all kinds of audiences. The exhibition looks to the past, present and future to help visitors understand what powers the Sun and stars, and show the efforts being made to harness that potential as a new source of clean, abundant and safe energy. Visitors will have the opportunity to download a mobile application for a truly interactive experience.

The exhibition is open, free of charge, in Marseille from 8 October through 19 December. (See information in English and French.) After Marseille, Fusion, Power to the People will travel across Europe.

The University of Manchester is hosting a virtual event on the challenges of and possible solutions to climate change from 11-14 October 2021. Over these four days, the festival will use presentations and discussion panels to share four goals: mitigation, adaptation, finance and collaboration. Each day of the event focuses on a different goal and a different question, as posed by the University of Manchester:

11 October: Mitigation

How do we secure global net zero?

12 October: Adaptation

How can we protect our communities and natural habitats?

13 October: Finance

How do we finance change?

14 October: Collaboration

How can we turn ambition into reality?

To answer that final question, ITER will be part of a panel called "Turning fusion from a dream to a reality." Sabina Griffith, Communications Officer, will represent ITER in this panel to discuss the potential of nuclear fusion as a sustainable source of energy. This panel will take place from 18-19:00 CEST, and the entire event is free and open to anyone who would like to attend.

Registration and a full schedule of events may be found at the original announcement here.

Scientists, engineers, policymakers, entrepreneurs and investors interested in fusion are invited to join the International Atomic Energy Agency's first fusion webinar on Monday, 22 November 2021. Among the planned talks on the potential of fusion as a carbon-free energy source and the technology needed to make it possible, Takayoshi Omae will present "Way Forward for the Fusion Community" on behalf of the ITER Organization. The webinar will also include a panel discussion with chair Melanie Windridge (Fusion Industry Association), who will also welcome questions from participants.

This event, hosted by IAEA's Sehila M. Gonzalez de Vicente, begins at 17:00 CEST and closes at 19:15. Participation is free, but registration is required. Please visit the original announcement, here, for registration details and more information.

The European Commission and the Industry Liaison Officers of Denmark, Sweden and Finland have organized an event to inform regional businesses about the ITER Project. Both the ITER Organization and Fusion for Energy will present during the forum, and there will also be opportunities for businesses to meet and network.

Depending on how the COVID-19 situation develops in the coming months, the Nordic ITER Business Forum may be held virtually or in-person at the Technical University of Denmark in Copenhagen. The event will take place from 19 to 20 January 2022, starting at noon CEST and ending at noon the following day.

Registration is open now—please visit the original announcement here to register.

Neil Mitchell hosts the third ITER Talks video, now available to watch on ITER's YouTube channel. The former Head of the Magnet Division gives viewers a closer look at how magnets contain and control plasma inside the tokamak.

In his presentation, Neil explains how the superconducting magnetic coils are created and used. Even minor changes within the coils can cause a shift in the magnetic field, and Neil highlights the great need for precision and care as experts work on the coils.

Future installments in the ITER Talks series will focus on other aspects of the ITER Project. Watch the third episode in the series here.

Each year, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) holds a General Conference to discuss topics of nuclear science and technology as well as budgetary and administrative issues. The 65th annual conference took place from 20-24 September 2021 at the Vienna International Centre in Austria, where a number of projects and organizations, including ITER, joined to share their progress with the world.

ITER was represented by Laban Coblentz, head of Communication. In his statement, delivered on behalf of ITER Director-General Bernard Bigot, he emphasized the benefits of the relationship between ITER and the IAEA. As ITER creates the first reactor-scale fusion device, the IAEA has the opportunity to take this blueprint and develop guidelines for fusion around the world. He also reported on ITER's assembly progress and the project's impact on the fusion community.

"Above all, the ITER Project is a tangible demonstration that multinational collaboration is possible at a practical level with countries that are not always aligned on all items," Coblentz said. "But at ITER we are working hand-in-hand toward a common goal: to leave a better legacy with regard to clean energy supply for our children and future generations."

For more information on the 2021 General Conference, see the IAEA site here.