The stage is ready, some of the props are already in place, and the show will soon begin. It will be a grand production served by an international cast of highly skilled performers. The central theme? Twin Titans, in the form of giant tools dancing a mechanical ballet to contribute to the assembly of one of the most complex machines ever conceived. The rafters of the Assembly Hall are the catwalk of this oversized theatre. They offer a breathtaking view of the ongoing work on the stage floor some 45 metres below.   To the right side of the 6,000-square-metre open space, technicians are busy preparing for the Titans' arrival, bolting semi-circular rail tracks to steel plates anchored deep into the floor, adjusting torque, and verifying alignment with laser optics.   The Twin Titans, SSAT-1 and SSAT-2 (for vacuum vessel Sector Sub-Assembly Tool), will travel along these tracks, opening and closing their arms to bring together and pre-assemble a vacuum vessel sector with a pair of toroidal field coils plus thermal shielding—for a total mass of 1,200 tonnes. The operation will be repeated nine times, once for each of the nine vacuum vessel sectors.   The Titans will operate in close cooperation with another giant tool—the double overhead crane that will deliver the sub-components to be assembled and, when completed, will carry each sub-assembly to the Tokamak well.   The Titans will operate in close cooperation with another giant tool—the double overhead gantry crane whose lifting capacity exceeds 1,500 tonnes. Load tests for the 1,500-tonne overhead crane will begin next week. But the dummy loads are already in place, stacked in the centre of the stage ... approximately 40 steel-and-concrete blocks that will stand in the place, for the time of the trials, of ITER's massive components.   Several tests will be performed: a static test at nominal capacity, followed by a dynamic test at 10 percent over-capacity (reproducing all of the operational movements of the crane) and a final test at 25 percent over-capacity to verify that the flexion of the 43-metre-long girders remains within specifications.   The actual production on stage will open in a little more than a year. It is expected to be one of the most spectacular in the history of science and industry.

Nothing gives a better sense of the size of the ITER machine than the ongoing works in the Cryostat Workshop. There, in this Indian enclave within the ITER international territory, the first sections of the steel cylinder that will contain the machine—the cryostat—are progressively taking shape.   This massive component, 30-metres high, 30 meters in diameter and a total weight of 3,850 tonnes, comprises four different sections: base, lower cylinder, upper cylinder and lid.   Although it is pierced by more than 200 penetrations, some as large as four metres in size, the cryostat is a leak-tight vacuum container that will act as a thermos to insulate the ultra-cold superconducting magnets from the outside environment.   It is assembled and welded on site from 54 segments manufactured in India. Segment delivery began two years ago, in December 2015.   Arunkumar Srivastava, who will take up his duty as Chair of the ITER Council in January, participated in the visit along with ITER Director-General Bernard Bigot. As of today, the first tier of the base section is finalized and welding operations are ongoing on the first tier of the lower cylinder.   On November 16, a traditional "coconut ceremony," took place to herald the start of welding operations on the base section tier two—a 750-tonne sub-component whose pedestal will support the combined mass of the Tokamak and cryostat (25,000 tonnes) and handle the forces resulting from the vacuum's compressive loads, from thermal loads originating in the cooling system and from potential seismic events.   "Tier two of the cryostat base is particularly challenging to assemble and weld," explains Anil Bhardwaj, a mechanical engineer in ITER Vessel Division. "The plates it is assembled from vary from 50 to 200 millimeters in thickness and tolerances are very precise, as its surface will be used as reference for the installation of the vacuum vessel and magnets."

The D-shaped inner core of a toroidal field coil, manufactured by the European consortium ASG, has left the fabrication facility in La Spezia, Italy. Carefully ensconced in a wooden transport frame, the 110-tonne component is on its way to be cold tested and finally inserted into a massive steel case. These will be the final steps before delivery to ITER. The European Domestic Agency is responsible for the procurement of 10 of the 18 toroidal field coils required by the ITER machine.   In a campaign that kicked off ten years ago with the signature of the Procurement Arrangement for the supply of 20 percent of toroidal field conductors, European contractors have progressively wound 97 tonnes of niobium-tin superconducting strand; cabled and jacketed approximately 20 km of toroidal field conductor; manufactured 70 radial plates; and progressively built the building blocks for the toroidal field coils—double pancake windings. Seven double pancakes are stacked to form each complete toroidal field winding pack.   At least 26 companies, and hundreds of people, have been involved along the way.   "The departure of Europe's first magnet from the ASG factory is a milestone of symbolic importance," says Alessandro Bonito Oliva, Head of Magnets for the European Domestic Agency. "This factory has been its 'home' during the last five years. Various companies and their workforces have been daily working to reach this objective and I am proud to say that we are entering into the final manufacturing stage. Congratulations to all!"   The D-shaped inner core is carefully packed into a wooden transport frame. Weighing 110 tonnes as it leaves the factory, it will weigh over 300 tonnes once inserted into its steel outer case at SIMIC. Approximately 5.5 kilometres of superconductor supplied by the ICAS consortium (Italian firms ENEA, Tratos Cavi and Criotec) went into the fabrication of the first completed winding pack. The seven grooved steel plates (radial plates) that separate conductor layers were supplied by CNIM (France) and SIMIC (Italy). Winding took place at a dedicated ASG Superconductor facility in La Spezia, Italy, where the ASG consortium (ASG plus Iberdrola Ingeneria and Elytt Energy) is responsible for producing ten winding packs.   The completed component left the ASG facility by truck on 20 November to be delivered to the nearest port. From there it will travel to the port of Marghera, near Venice, to be delivered to SIMIC S.p.A. Teams there will test the component at cryogenic temperatures (-193 °C, or 80 K) before inserting it into a stainless steel coil case provided by the Japanese Domestic Agency.   See the full report on the European Domestic Agency website.

The Japanese Domestic Agency has delivered its final contribution to the ITER neutral beam test facility in Padua, Italy, where the high-energy ion source and injection system of ITER's most powerful heating system will be tested in advance of ITER operation. The ITER neutral beam test facility (NBTF), also called PRIMA, is a joint international effort to develop the neutral beam injector prototypes for ITER. Hosted by the Italian fusion laboratory Consorzio RFX, the facility houses two test beds—SPIDER, for the development and characterization of the ITER negative ion source; and MITICA, a full-size prototype of the 1 MV heating neutral beam injectors.   Outside of PRIMA, no other facility in the world can achieve the challenging requirements for the ITER neutral beam system simultaneously—power up to 16.5 MW at 1MeV of energy, and with a pulse length up to 3600 seconds.  Europe, Japan and India are contributing all components according to the specifications of Procurement Arrangements signed with the ITER Organization; Italy hosts the facility and provides the buildings and a large contribution to the manpower.   A ceremony held on Monday 20 November celebrated the successful conclusion of Japan's component deliveries to the facility. Over two years, Japan has delivered high-voltage components for the 1 MV power supply system of MITICA, including the megavolt bushing, the megavolt transmission line and the high voltage part of the megavolt power supply.   "Today, we recognize and celebrate the final delivery of some of the complex components that make up the ITER neutral beam test facility," said ITER Director-General Bernard Bigot by video address to the 50 participants at the event. "This is a major step toward the successful implementation and development of the neutral beam system—one of ITER's key heating and current drive systems."   Attending the ceremony were representatives of the Italian and Japanese governments, the European Commission, the Japanese National Institute of Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology (QST), and industry. All lauded the benefit and synergies created when complex technological challenges are taken on by international effort.   See a photo gallery of the event below.

At the Srednenevsky Shipbuilding Plant in Saint Petersburg, Russia, specialists from JSC "SNSP" and the Efremov Institute (NIIEFA) are winding the fifth double pancake of the future coil. Eight double pancakes in all will be necessary to complete this 300-tonne magnet which will be installed at the top of the machine, crowning the 18 toroidal field magnets and steel vacuum vessel. With the five other ring magnets, poloidal field coil #1 (PF1) will contribute to shaping the plasma and contributing to its stability by "pinching" it away from the walls.   Following the signature of the Procurement Arrangement with the ITER Organization in 2011, the Russian Domestic Agency chose the Efremov Institute, Saint Petersburg, as the main supplier. Most of the winding equipment has been designed, manufactured, and tested at the Efremov Institute, which has also developed some of the poloidal field coil manufacturing processes; JSC "SNSP" has contributed a number of science-based technologies. Approximately six kilometres of niobium-titanium (NbTi) superconductor will be required to wind PF1.   Winding is underway on double pancake #5 (of eight). At the same time as the niobium-titanium conductor is wound into the correct dimensions, it is insulated with glass-fibre tape. In 2014, all equipment was transported to the Srednenevsky Shipbuilding Plant, located in an area which is a well suited to the needs of transporting the completed component. Following the successful passage of qualification milestones, double pancake winding began in 2014. Teams are currently winding the fifth double pancake of the series of eight; the first two have passed the impregnation phase and the third is undergoing impregnation now.   During vacuum pressure impregnation, or VPI, epoxy resin is injected into a sealed mould containing the double pancake and then cured to solidify, creating a rigid assembly.   In accordance with the schedule, the magnet is to be completed, tested and delivered to the ITER site in 2021.

Once a year, ITER and its neighbours meet in one of the town or neighbouring villages. The meeting is organized by the Commission locale d'information (CLI), an official citizen's watchdog group composed of representatives from local governments, environmental groups, trade unions, businesses and health professionals.   Although the CLI is in constant interaction with ITER through "technical groups" on nuclear safety, environment or communication, the annual public meeting offers a unique opportunity to discuss a broad range of issues, from employment on the construction site to the place of fusion in the "energy transition" that France wishes to implement.   On 23 November, the public meeting was held in Manosque, the closest town (pop. 22,000) to the ITER site, where some 40 percent of the ITER staff has chosen to reside.   The public and ITER have come a long way since the decision to site the project in Provence was taken in June 2005. What was then mysterious is now familiar, but concerns remain.   The meeting last week, attended by approximately 80 people, was an occasion to underline the economic impact of the project on the local communities and businesses, explain the benign impact of a fusion installation on the environment and reaffirm the importance of offering a new option in the global quest for clean energy.

Plasma science is about to get a new online outlet. Aptly named Plasma, the cross-disciplinary scholarly journal will be a platform for all aspects of plasma science such as plasma physics, plasma chemistry and space plasma. Publication formats include research articles, reviews, short communications and letters. The international, open-access and peer-reviewed scientific journal will be published quarterly by the Swiss online publisher MDPI. The first volume of the new journal is expected to come out in 2018. David A. Gates, principal research physicist and Stellarator Physics Division Head at the US Department of Energy's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), is the newly appointed editor-in-chief of the journal. Following his nomination Gates said: "I look forward to helping advance the international research arena in plasma science. This is an outstanding opportunity to help promote the research of a vital area of physics and to open the door to communicating that research to the global community." Plasma is the fourth state of matter. It is a hot, electrically charged gas and the most abundant form of visible matter in the universe. Some 99 percent of the known universe is in plasma state. Plasma can also be found on Earth such as in lightning and fluorescent light bulbs. Read more about the journal and its new editor-in-chief.